#98 Day Three of Portrait Workshop

By Day Three our heads are full of what to do, what not to do, and a complex mix of eagerness and frustration and some mental fatigue and excitement all rolled into one. It's a great group of painters and the comraderie, support and encouragement is high. This day we had two models, and had two hours with each model. There was a sigh of relief to know we had two hours to stare, correct, paint, stare and correct again. We are all beginning to see the subtleties of skin tone, shape, etc. a bit better. Most everyone in the group is an accomplished painter in their own right, yet we confessed we had totally forgotten anything we knew before and are concentrating only on the principles Liana is truly trying to transmit to us. In my opinion this is the best way to be at a workshop....with an empty and open mind. This day turned out to be really fun. I enjoyed the process immensely. What a woderful way to spend a day! The Ray for the day is Day Three of Portrait Workshop (or Jess and Garrett).

#97 Day Two of Portrait Class

On Day Two Liana talked to us about bone structure, planes, shadow patterns and skin tones. Furthermore she talked about composition, lighting, warm and cool tones and value. Of course this is not new information. It is just that It will take a lifetime for it all to really sink in. And that still won't be enough time. That is part of what makes painting so fascinating. I never expect to master it. I only expect to keep learning. In the afternoon we had two models and we moved around the room so we got different views. We did 20 minute drawings and then added color and shadow patterns. Our task is to see the shapes and paint what we see. The task is not to paint a nose, but to paint the shapes, values and temperatures on the face and if we get those right the nose will appear. And the lips. And the eyes. And......the same works for landscapes or architecture or even old trucks. (These women were both actually very attractive.....my concentration on all of these elements seems to have translated into these quickly painted images). Remember...you are looking at "process", not "product". The Ray for the Day is Day Two of Portrait Class.

#96 Day One in Portrait Class

For Four days we listened, watched, and painted for 6 hours each day. Hear, see, do. I came home totally exhausted each evening. Liana Bennett is a wonderful, generous teacher. She really wants her students to get the information and improve their painting skills. This workshop was about portraits in oil. I keep saying I am not interested in painting portraits....but all painting is painting. If you get the shapes right and put them in the right place it doesn't matter what you are painting. Faces are the hardest thing there is to paint. Liana told us to quit saying we don't paint portraits. If we are painters....we are painters. If we can see, really see, we can paint anything. Intense seeing was a major part of the weekend. We worked on seeing the face and putting the shapes where they belong. We made a lot of drawings and paintings. I selected a few to show here. The first day we drew from photos, first with vine charcoal and then with paint. I have included three of those drawings. In the next few days I will record the steps we took throughout the 4 days. The Ray for the Day is "Day One in Portrait Class".

#95 STUDIO 106

I know, I know, it's been a long time since I've posted a painting. I must confess it is hard for me to paint in the Summer. So much going on. And this Summer I am preparing our home in Kirkland to put it on the market. Slowly we are inching our way toward making Langley our home. It may be a bit premature, but I found the perfect studio space for me in downtown Langley. Though I don't imagine I'll be working there much during these next few months, I will begin to move my studio there and start establishing myself. It is right downtown Langley and is also a commercial space. I'm imagining something like "If the artist is in the studio is open". At least for starters. When I saw the space (peering through the window) I just knew it was meant for me. On Wednesday I signed a two year lease beginning this September. The address is 106 McLeod Alley (I just love alleys) and when asked to produce a name for my business the words "Studio 106" popped into my mind. So Studio 106 it is. It is 400 square feet with 12' ceilings and an entrance on the alley. Meanwhile I am attending a portrait painting class with teacher Liana Bennett. Yesterday was so much fun. I feel so completely in my element in studio settings with easels, paint, brushes and other artists around. We arent' supposed to be working toward a product.....just learning. I will, however, post a few of my "learning experiences" when all is said and done.

#94 "Number 201", oil, 14" x 11"

Today was so much fun. The weather was perfect and I went to the Snoqualmie Railroad Station with the Eastside Association of Fine Arts. During the Summer they post a plein air painting location for each Tuesday. This location was right up my alley. I had a great time painting this train. There was a guy sitting on a picnic bench nearby playing guitar and harmonica and it gave a haunting atmosphere to that old train yard. The Ray for the Day is "Number 201".

#93 "Dog House Tav", oil, 11" x 14"

Last Saturday I spent a blissful day standing on a street corner in Langley on Whidbey Island painting this street scene. The Dog House Tavern, a beloved hang out, has been painted many times. This is my take on that corner. I'm sure I will paint it again. Lots of people stopped to look, chat, watch, and comment. The weather was perfect and I couldn't have had a better time. I look forward to many more such days in that sweet, sweet town. When I started the painting the shadows were in entirely different places from when I finished. The photo at the top of the page is the street when the original shadows were gone. I noted all the darks and lights when I began the painting and tried to hold that in my mind as I completed....and as the sun did it's moving thing throughout the day. The Ray for the Day is "The Dog House Tav".

#92 "My Backyard", oil, 14" x 11"

After spending most of June in Mexico, and returning to multiple crises with my 92 year old Dad, I finally painted yesterday for the first time in nearly two months. Joanne called and suggested we paint in my backyard. It was a struggle. My palette was all dry and crusty. I had to scrape all the old paint away and squirt out new. I had to remember where to begin. I made many trips back to my studio to get stuff. And it felt good to stand in the shade with Joanne across the yard, painting away. At one point I was ready to wipe it off and call it a good try, but I just hate to get skunked. I persevered. It is not a perfect painting. I may have to fix some parts of it after it is dry, but at least it is not a "wipe off". I feel I captured the feeling of the mid day sun spilling across the yard and illuminating the red umbrella, and the cool shade. That's good enough for my first plein air oil painting of the season. My Dad's okay, by the way.
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