Studies done in response to the year end Portrait Exchange at Different Strokes from Different Folks.
Initially, I found the photo I was sent to be difficult to grab on to. The lighting is direct and washes out a lot of the facial features and the back ground suggests a leafy, park like setting but other elements appeared to have been clipped out in Photoshop. I did a few sketches and then some manipulation of the photo in photoshop to help me find some more shadows and contrast.
My first painting:
A value study vignette using only Gamblin Torrit Grey and Brilliant White on a neutral grey gessoed ground.
8x8 canvas panel
Next I took what I learned in the grey and white study and let my curiosity about the background take control. Where was this gal? At an outdoor festival or concert, her photo caught just as she spotted friends set up on a blanket with a picnic spread? Maybe at a horse show watching one of her students in the ring? Could have been anywhere, but the rich greens made me think tropical so, on a cold and snowy day, I decided she and I would relocate to the tropics, maybe Tahiti, for the next painting. This was fun, using color to define the facial forms rather than just value. The background is a pure fantasy built from a number of tropical jungle references and a nod to Rousseau and Gaugin.
