Commissioned Portrait

I just finished and delivered the portrait show here, Charlotte, oil on board, 12x16.

New Small Painting

My latest painting is a 12x9 portrait of my son done on RayMar art panels (Claessens 13 Double Oil Primed Portrait Lined). I enjoyed painting on this surface - the texture holds paint nicely. You can see the texture of the board in this image. I think it would be difficult to paint smaller more detailed work on this panel, but I have ordered some larger sizes and look forward to using them in the future.

Progress on Oil Painting of Boy Reading

I've made a second pass at the face, hair, and sofa in this photo. I am taking tomorrow off, but will tackle the hands, book and shoes next.

Work in Progress - First Layer

Pictured above is my first pass at a new painting. At this point, I've roughly sketched out the painting and covered the entire surface with paint. Many areas are lacking contrast, and I will reinstate dark areas and add more depth in the next pass.

Sophia (Oil Portrait)

My newest portrait, Sophia, 12x16, oil on panel.

New Small Painting

Above is my latest painting - a quick piece - 16x12, oil on panel. I kept most of it loose, with the face more resolved.

Two New Pieces

Above are scanned images of my two most recent pieces: "Winter's End", oil on linen mounted on panel, 16x12, and "Matthew", colored pencil on sanded paper, 14x11.

On the Easel - "Winter's End"

My latest oil painting is about finished - I really tried to stand back and paint this from a distance to get the shapes, values, and colors correct. Winter's End, 16x12, oil on board.

Oil Portrait ...

I'm putting the finishing touches on an oil portrait, shown above. This was a joy to work on - I loved the pose and expression. I hope to varnish in the next week and then get a high resolution scan.

Next I have a portrait commission in pastel, and then I want to do something in colored pencil. Working  in various media keeps me on my toes!

New Portrait Commission

I recently completed the portrait shown framed above, which was given as a Father's Day present. A scan of the portrait can be seen on my website, but I wanted to post a photo of the framed piece to show how a harmonious frame can enhance a portrait.

Getting there...

Portrait In (Slow) Progress

I've made some refinements here, and toned down the chair quite a bit. I still have a lot of work to do, especially on the sweater, hands, chair, and minor refinements elsewhere. I'm working only about 2 hours per day, and only a few days per week on this one... so progress is slow!

New Painting in Progress

Here are two snapshots of a painting on my easel. I started with an underpainting using burnt umber and thinned out with turpentine (I use Shiva Signa-Turp), and then started painting thicker layers. I still need additional layer(s) of paint on the chair to tone it down and refine, as well as the socks, hands, sweater, pants, and maybe some refinements to the face.

Slow Progress in Colored Pencil

I've started a new colored pencil piece, and after working in oil for so long, I am surprised at how slowly I am progressing. I work in layers in order to achieve the complex yet subtle skin tones, and typically start in darker colors, working toward mid-tones, and finishing with the lightest colors. I repeat this process many times throughout the drawing, as needed.

Here are a few snapshots of my progress thus far. The first is the drawing with only dark umber. The next two shots have some red and blue added. In the final photo, I have decided to start working the mid-tones and lights one section at a time, and have done most of the work on the father's face.

My process is somewhat similar to how I work in oil in that I create an "underpainting" as the foundation for my drawing, but very different in how slowly I build color, and also because my initial drawing and underpainting must be more refined in colored pencil. In both, I tend to work very quickly throughout the entire process. I think people would be surprised to see me work - I don't slowly move the pencil or paintbrush carefully rendering details, but rather move quickly and intuitively, trying not to worry too much about details until the very end. The "mistakes" I make are corrected with each subsequent layer, and the overall artwork ends up looking realistic.

New Paintings

I just had my two most recent paintings scanned, both 20x16, oil on panel. You can also see them on my website here and here.

Getting there...

Still some work to be done on the hair, shirt, and baby's face, and then the background, of course. Maybe another couple of days, and it will be done!

Starting the hands... my favorite part!

I'm working on the hands now, which although is my favorite part, is very time consuming! I painted for just over an hour today, and almost the entire time was spent getting the contrast and color right on the hand. I'll move onto the baby's legs and feet next, then the rest of the arm, finish up the blouse and skirt, and then complete the background before making any finishing touches.

Mother Son Portrait Work in Progress

I've done a little more work on the painting on my easel... I am in the process of refining the faces and shirts, and I am starting the arms as well.

My Palette

I've just started another painting, and I thought I would take a snapshot of my palette. I use a piece of wax paper taped to the palette, because it makes cleanup really simple. My paints are all Shiva Signature Oil Colors: Zinc White, Ivory Black, Raw Sienna, Prussian Blue, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Yellow Medium, Naples Yellow, Shiva Orange, Cadmium Red Scarlet, Alizarin Crimson, Burnt Sienna, Raw Umber, Burnt Umber, Sap Green, and occasionally (not shown here) Shiva Green, and Ultramarine Blue Deep. I mix some of the colors based on the palette used by Daniel Greene, and some I've made up. Even though I mix the colors before beginning each painting session, I still often end up mixing further before or after applying the color to the canvas or board.

Father Son Portrait Completed

I am calling this piece done. The snapshot is a little blurry, but I basically added more depth to the background and cleaned up/refined areas such as the father's head and arm. The painting is 20x16, and closeup you can really see the brush strokes - it's not as "photorealistic" as it might appear on the computer screen.

Next I am going to do a mother/son portrait (self portrait!), of the same size and similar color scheme. I will also post the final image of this father/son portrait once it is varnished and scanned.