"Let's Cuddle" - watercolor baby portrait step by step

August 24, 2010 in commissions, step by step

So I'm done with two commissioned portraits (oh the feeling of a completed project! :)) - the sleeping baby and the Icelandic lady. I was working on both at about the same time and it was interesting to compare. First of all, the baby is practically a life size painting - 11 x 14.5", and the woman's portrait is 9x12" - tiny , her whole head was maybe 2 inches! The thing is, working big is easier than working small. Most of you who paint will probably say, "Duh!" - but it's just one of those epiphanies that come to you only from personal experience (how else would you explain the fear of a full watercolor sheet?) And working big and small at the same time is a good way to figure it out. Here's a step by step sequence of pictures of the baby portrait, minus the drawing stage. Starting with a preliminary sketch:

TADA!

Starting on two new watercolor portrait commissions!

July 07, 2010 in commissions

First one is a painting of my husband's cousin's baby son Cash who lives near Seattle (I do hope to visit one day). I had a couple of photos to choose from and I picked the one where he is sleeping with one of his little hands under his cheek and the other on his tummy:

The other commission is also pretty interesting. During our participation in Harvey House Market, we met the president of the Barstow chamber of commerce who happened to have an idea for a painting. His mom (we met her as well) has a photo of herself in Icelandic national costume (they are from Iceland) - and that's what I am painting. Here is the preliminary sketch with two different background solutions: dark red and golden.

And another shot of the gold background - in different light conditions:

I also brushed the gold paint on a little thicker on the right side than on the left, letting the red show through or covering it. At this point, I'm not sure which background i will stick to. I like the red for the energy but I also like the way that gold plays with the details on her clothing. Maybe something in between? Like the left side of the last image? In any case, it is a very interesting project and it smells like masking fluid on those lace sleeves...

Untitled I ;)

January 26, 2010 in sketchbook, commissions

After a week of crashed laptops and lightning-stricken internet towers, I am back!

The two portraits I've been working on are progressing, albeit slowly.

I also painted a couple of little paintings (to be scanned) and worked out the composition for the group portrait.

And some time last weekend, I had Christmas again: my order of artist supplies came in from Blick. A huge 18x24 Arches block (I'm trying to think bigger!), a couple sheets of Yupo to finally try, a big fat ultramarine tube (because I'm always out of my blues), a Lama Li watercolor sketchbook (niiiiice handmade texture though the sheets feel a bit thin) and a set of Shiva Artist's Paintstik Oil Colors. I am artistically drooling all over everything :) Now I just need a little me-time to convert my excitement into some art! :)

Girl with grape-vine, and another child portrait

January 17, 2010 in commissions, step by step

Good morning...I think I would pay somebody to let me sleep in on a Sunday morning. I worked on two portraits yesterday, one commission and the other a painting of my husband's little niece. I saw a photo of her wearing a bright multicolored scarf and I just had to make a painting! :) Here are pictures at the beginning and at the end of the day. You can definitely tell which one I worked on more:

And the little girl:

Both of the subjects are back-lit (contre-jour!), and in the case of the girl with grape-vine, there is also flash from the camera, all of which makes working on it a little confusing. I find myself inventing the shadows and lights on her face, and it feels like her whole face should be much darker.

Girl with grape-vine, progress report :)

January 15, 2010 in commissions, step by step

Yesterday, I made the drawing for it (I don't always draw before painting but I felt that this was a little too complex to skip the drawing):

I wet the paper to wash away the extra graphite and grease, and since the paper was wet, went ahead and put some color on:

Once it dried, I did another wash:

And after this one was dry, another one:

And that's kind of where I am tonight (one wash ahead, but I'm waiting for it to dry). Started another portrait, too! Pictures tomorrow.

Oh, and by the way, this is the tiny little space I have to work in while we're waiting on our house to close...:

Starting on a new commission!

January 14, 2010 in commissions, step by step

And planning to document it from beginning to end. I kept putting if off because there is work to do before starting the act of painting but now I feel ready :) I will be working from photographs:

So, I played with different variations of the composition. I picked the first photo as the main reference and cropped it this way and that while sketching ideas of the composition. I moved the grape-vine to cover more of the face, to give it a little more playfulness.

I was still not quite sure about the composition so I decided to make a full size sketch and see how that looks:

I like the diagonal movement of the grape leaves and the overall V-shape that the direction the girl is leaning in and the grape-vine are forming. I also decided to give a little more space in the upper left area. I can always crop it if I don't like it in the end.

Of course, there are precedents of a "girl with grapes" in art history. The one I've known since art school is by Karl Brullov: