Laura Portrait

This is a life class portrait of a fellow painter who became the model for one night.  She is a spectacular portrait painter and I wanted to do a good job.   As I mentioned in blogs past, the more flawless the face, the more difficult it is to honor the beauty.    I did my best and I reworked the nose area multiple times!   The brushstrokes for hair on the other hand were fun and free flowing.

Laura

Driftway Overlook

Set up

 

What a location!  This "little" North River is a tributary to the "big" part of the North River that separates Scituate, MA from Marshfield, MA.   The tidal flow causes the river levels to rise and fall along with the ocean tides.   At the start of my painting, the riverbanks were expansive yet by the time I finished up, the silty borders had started to diminish.   The stream of kayaks never diminished so I included a few in the painting.    

Stage One

 

This, for me, was also a good example of how distorted color can be in a photograph.  I had held up scoops of paint against each of the major local colors while I was painting. By my judgement, I had achieved  pretty precise color matches. Yet when I printed my reference photo back in the studio, the blues were oh so blue, the lightest shades of sand were white and the reddish undertones of the pilings on the left were black.  The reference was useful then only to check the drawing - not color.

Stage Two

Always let your eyes guide you on color. :)

 

 

 

 

 

Driftway Overlook

Britt Portrait

Britt

 

 

Painting from life is a challenging and rewarding undertaking.   This model had beautiful distinctive features which helped in establishing facial "landmarks."   Her flesh tones seemed pale under the studio spotlights so I took the liberty of giving this lovely woman high color.

Rows of Harbor Slips

Rows of Harbor Slips - In Progress

There is a perfectly located municipal building along the water in Scituate, MA.  Apparently the building is not in use, so I was happy to enjoy the spot for painting,  along with others who had also discovered a view that could only enhance their morning coffee.

 

The wide aspect of this canvas (8x16 inches) was nicely suited for depicting a sweeping vista that included rows of boat slips, the distant Second Cliff, a long dock with boathouse and even the privacy fence of the next property to the south.

Rows of Harbor Slips