Vinnie (Painting as of November 27, 2021)

Here is my painting of Vinnie as it looked on Saturday, the 27th. I sent this photo to the person who commissioned this pet portrait, and she said it was perfect (or purr-fect).  So I'm not going to make any major changes, but there is a bit of cleaning up to do (fixing stray marks, etc.)  Almost done!

Reposting: Menorah and Candles (video)

It's Chanukah (the third night) and here's another menorah. I created this one back in 2014 using the Brushes app on my iPad

Vinnie (Painting as of November 23, 2021)

Here is my portrait of Vinnie as of last Tuesday, the 23rd.  Still heading toward the finish line.  I was working on eyes, background, and texture, trying to make the cat look softer.  The light looks different, mostly because I took the picture at 4:30. Here north of Boston, it was nearly dark, so I had to use artificial light.  But I was pleased at how the painting looks under those conditions because that is how it will be seen about half the time!. Painting is almost there. . .To be continued.

Reposting: Menorah in Window (Stroke-by-stroke video)

Back in 2016, I used the Brushes app on my iPad to create this little video.  (Brushes would capture a stroke-by-stroke video as you draw.) Reposting today for the Chanukah, night 2.  

Vinnie (Painting as of November 22, 2021)

Here is my portrait of Vinnie as of November 22nd, nearing the finish line, but not there yet.  I continued working on the eyes, and correcting lines (head position, curve of back), while working on the background. Still some things to fix. . . 

A Quick Little Menorah (Video)

This is my Chanukah post for the first night.  Yikes! We are still eating Thanksgiving pie and it is already Chanukah!  Everything seems too rushed, and was thinking that maybe I don't have time to make a Chanukah video this year.  And then I thought, maybe I do.  So I opened my Procreate app on my iPad and drew this little menorah.  It's not fancy; I didn't even use a stylus.  But still it makes me happy and I am glad I did this. So if you want to see the candles light up, just press play.

Vinnie (Painting as of November 21, 2021)

Here is my painting of Vinnie as it looked on November 21, 2021 (last Sunday).  I am working from a photograph (reference posted here October 19th),  In the reference photo, the cat's eyes are in shadow, so there is very little, if any detail.  I assumed that Vinnie's eyes were brown or amber, but last Sunday I called the  person who commissioned this portrait and learned,  much to my surprise, that Vinnie has green eyes.  So I added some subtle touches of (dark) green to the eyes. And I don't want to "invent" too much when I am painting a portrait, I wanted to suggest a bit more detail to the eyes, so I used Painter to create a digital "closeup" of Vinnie's eyes at a much higher exposure. Vinnie's eyes still looked dark, but I could at least get a better idea of where the whites of his eyes were, and suggested a bit of that in my painting.   To be continued. . .

Vinnie (Painting as of November 20, 2021)

Here's my painting of Vinnie as it looked on November 20th.  I was still revising body position and features. I continued to indicate light and shadow on the body, and worked on the background. Still a work in progress. . .

Fall Colors (with Prisma filter)

In early November, I noticed some colorful fall leaves during a walk at a park in the neighborhood.  Tonight I cropped the original image and added the Prisma app's "Watercolor" filter.  I like the unexpected harmony from so many strong colors. So I decided to use the image to wish happy times and safe travels to those celebrating today.

Vinnie (Painting as of November 19, 2021)

Here is my portrait of Vinnie as it looked last Friday.  I am painting this from a photo (sent to me by the person who commissioned the portrait).  I used that photo to try to determine which  highlights and shadows are on the body.  I also started to add more color to the cat. To be continued." . .

Vinnie (Painting as of November 18, 2021)

Here is my painting of Vinnie as it looked last Thursday.  At this point, although I was still making small corrections to the face, I was really working hard to make sure the body of the cat was right. I am painting this pet portrait from a photo that was sent to me (posted here October 29th). I do not trace, but sometimes I measure. Most of the time I just look hard--while I am painting but also in between painting sessions--comparing the painting with the photo. Sometimes I do that with both photo and painting upside-down.  It always helps, though I am not sure why. I think it encourages me to paint what I actually see, rather than what I think I know. To be continued. . .

Near Colorado Springs (Acrylic Watermedia Painting with Pasted Paper)

Here is my painting, finished on November 20th, ready in the nick of time to be delivered this weekend it to Galatea Fine Art for the annual members' show in December. My painting reference was a picture that I took on June 9, 2018, during a trip to my home state. (My painting reference is posted here, October 19th). The last step in finishing the painting was to change the green in the foreground. While I had been reworking the foreground shapes, the color had become too bright a green for Colorado, even in June. So I mixed up some more of that Colorado sage green and now this looks more like home to me. When I see this view, I know I am nearing the Springs, heading to see old friends.

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 19, 2021)

Here is my mountain painting (still in progress) as it looked on Thrusday, November 19th. At this point, it is getting close to finished, but I wasn't happy with some of the shapes of the bushes in the foreground so I worked on that. To be continued.

Vinnie (Painting as of November 17, 2021)

Here is my portrait of Vinnie as it looked on November 17th.  This is a commission that I am working on, based on a photo sent to me. (See my post as of October 29th).  At this point, I felt like I had a likeness to Vinnie's face, I was still making adjustments to the shape and position of the head, trying hard not to loose the likeness in the process.  And I was working hard to get the cat's body position right. To be continued

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 17, 2021)

Here is my mountain painting as of November 17th.  I hadn't worked on it for a few days, but when I did get a chance to paint, I made some changes to the forested areas in the bottom half of the canvas.  Still a few things to fix. . .

Vinnie (Painting as of November 13, 2021)

Here is my pet painting still in progress, as it looked on November 13, 2021. At this point, I was pretty happy with the likeness, but was working on the head shape and tilt, and beginning to refine the position of the body. This is a commissioned portrait based on a photo that was sent to me.  I did a little digital editing of the photo to get it ready to use as a painting reference (posted here October 29th.) I am not tracing, but working "by eye".  If something seems off, I sometimes measure, but what works best is turning both the canvas and the reference photo upside-down.  I am hoping to finish this portrait soon, but meanwhile I have to say "To be continued. . ."

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 13, 2021)

Here's my mountain painting-in-progress as it looked on November 13.  This is based on a photo that I took in Colorado during a visit in 2018. (My photo reference is posted here October 19th.)  This photo shows recent work to define the dark green forested areas at the base of the mountains.  Still a bit more to do, though.  This is acrylic and pasted paper on Aquabord, 16 x 20 inches.

Vinnie (Painting as of November 12, 2021)

Here is my current "pet-portrait-in-progress" as it looked on Friday, November 12th.  I am working from a photo of this lovely cat. My painting reference is posted here, October 29th. I am continuing to paint, starting to work more on the cat's body. But I am looking hard and revising as I go. (Part of looking hard sometimes means turning the painting and the photo reference upside-down. It is amazing how much that helps.) I am checking the position of the features and making changes to the position of the cat's body.  Every day I see something I need to fix, but that is part of the process. I am getting there. 

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 12, 2021)

Here is my mountain painting in progress as it looked on Friday, November 12.  This is based on a photo that I took in Colorado in June of  2018. (Photo reference is posted here, October 19th.)  I softened the color in the foreground with some of that Colorado sage green.  I also softened some of the colors in the mountains to get some atmospheric perspective.  This is acrylic paint and pasted paper on Aquabord, 16 x 20.  

Vinnie (Painting as of November 10, 2021)

I am continuing work on this pet portrait, and here is how it looked on November 10th.  I am enjoying getting to know Vinnie; I feel like I know his face now. I am working on make sure things are in the right position, so I am making minor changes as I go.  I am checking and rechecking the position of Vinnie's body as well as the tilt of his head, trying to maintain the likeness as I make adjustments to the pose.  I have learned to think of time as part of my artist materials, especially when I am painting a portrait.  Taking the time to look and look again helps me spot things that need to change, and helps me avoid painting my mistakes into my finished work. I would rather take my time and get it right. But I am making progress and hope to finish this portrait soon. . .

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 10, 2021)

Here is my current mountain painting as it looked on November 10, 2021.  I was working on the foreground.  I photographed this under artificial light (at 4:30 pm, thanks to daylight savings time) so the colors look different. My reference is a photo that I took in June of 2018 during a trip to my home state. To be continued. . . .

Vinnie (Painting as of November 9, 2021)

Here is my portrait of Vinnie as it looked on November 9th.  This is a commissioned portrait and I am working from a photo, which I altered digitally to create my painting reference (posted here on October 29th). At this point, you can see I was beginning to add a little color, but this was mostly to make it easier to keep track of the changes I am making. My main goal: to try to maintain the likeness of Vinnie as I began to paint into my sketch.  Although the features were pretty close to my reference, I was still revising with the cat's position and the position of his features. To be continued. . . 

Dad April 44 (Rescued Snapshot)

Every Veteran's Day,  I look through photos of my Dad during World War II, and I have taken a pass  on posting this photo for several years now. I thought that if I posted it today, maybe I could figure out why.  It’s a great picture of my dad and it looks like him but it seems uncharacteristic.  He was a gentle, peace-loving man. But did his bit during World War II to fight the Nazis.  And he worked on munitions.  And here is is wearing them.*  (There’s another picture of his friend Ray doing the same thing). It seems…well…inappropriately lighthearted to say the least. But then, most of the photos my father sent home were for his wife and his mother and his siblings, and were "sanitized" moments from his war experience: here I am on the boat heading overseas, here I am with my buddies in front of our tent, here I am on leave In London, here I am playing piano in the band. (As a child all I knew was that my dad played piano in the army. Between that and all the talk of USO dances, I pictured World War II as a kind of musical.) Well, it is true that my father played piano at Army events during the war but that’s not all he did. He worked in munitions that were used against the Nazis. That’s hard truth to reconcile with my gentle, peace-loving father. So maybe that’s why I didn’t want to post this photo. I don’t like war, but neither did my father. And the Nazis had to be stopped. I turned the photo over and what my Dad wrote on the back helped me: “April 1944 Pass the 50 cal ammunition.”* This is a reference to a popular song written in 1942 by Frank Loesser after the bombing of Pearl Harbor.  Supposedly the song was inspired by a phrase uttered by a chaplain:

“Praise the lord and pass the ammunition…and we’ll all stay free”

*like a Tallis, it occurs to me. 

**used in anti-aircraft machine guns I believe. 

Vinnie (Painting as of November 8, 2021)

Here is the portrait of Vinnie as it looked on November 8th. I am working from a (digitally edited) photo, posted here on October 29.  At the point that I took this picture, I was in the very early stages of transforming a sketch on canvas into a painting, working just with brown and white paint, focusing on where the lightest and darkest areas should go.  To be continued. . . .

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 8, 2021)

I am continuing to work on this painting, which is based on a photo that I took during my most recent trip to Colorado in June of 2018 (photo reference posted here, October 19). This is acrylic used as watermedia on Aquabord, but I am also using collage (pasted tissue paper).  In this photo, you can see that I am still working on those mountains in the background. 

Vinnie (Painting as of November 7, 2021)

Here is my portrait of Vinnie as of November 7th, the day I started painting.  This is a commission, and you can see my photo reference posted here on October 29th. After several days of sketching on canvas and revising, I had enough of a likeness to start painting.  I began by painting into the sketch with brown paint.  I was glad to make a start, although I could already see things I needed to change.  To be continued. . . .

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 7, 2021)

Here is the latest on my work-in-progress.  I am working from a photo that I took back in June of 2018 during a trip back to my home state of Colorado.  (My reference photo is posted here October 29.)  What is new? I worked on the sky, starting with some pasted tissue paper in blue and then painting into it.  The addition of pasted paper is new and learning how to make it work is exciting but a little scary.  The paint is acrylic and I am painting on Aquabord, 16 x 20 inches.

Vinnie (Sketch on Canvas as of November 6, 2021)

I am getting ready to paint a portrait of this cat, working from a photo. (My photo reference is posted here October 29th).  To get to ready to paint, I have been sketching Vinnie on the canvas with some conte crayon.  I started with gray, then switched to brown just to be able to see the changes.  I have been making small changes to Vinnie's little face, and am getting closer to a likeness, so I plan to start painting soon.

Vinnie (Sketch on Canvas as of November 5, 2021)

I worked on this project this morning. I am getting ready to paint a portrait of this cat, and with my photo reference, am sketching out my composition on the canvas.  Today I made some changes to Vinnie's face, using brown conte crayon to make it easier to see what I have changed. Of course, this portrait has to look like a specific cat, not just a cat in general. I am getting closer to a likeness of Vinnie, but I need to keep going. . .

Vinnie (Sketch on Canvas as of November 4, 2021)

Today I worked on this project, a pet portrait of Vinnie.  Using my photo reference, I sketched in the basic idea with gray conte crayon.  I don't have a likeness yet, but was concentrating on placement and composition. This is going to be a painting with acrylics on an 8 x 10 inch canvas.

Near Colorado Springs (Painting as of November 2, 2021)

Here is my current work-in-progress as it looked yesterday.  I am working from a photo that I took in Colorado in 2018. (My painting reference is posted here, October 19th).  This is acrylic used as watermedia on Aquabord, but I am also using some pasted paper.  Yesterday I worked on the foreground, starting with some yellow-green tissue paper.  Then I painted into it with darker green, and worked back toward the mountains. To be continued. . .

My Mother's Face (Digitally Modified Photo)

My mother was born on November 2, so today I hoped to post an image of her, as I usually do. But  there was a lot going, so I knew I wouldn't have a lot of time.  Late this afternoon, I finally found a photo to start with, a full-length view of my mother as "Matron of Honor" at my Aunt Edy's wedding. (This was taken sometime in the 1940s and the photographer was Raoul Turner, of Pueblo). I thought I would just add a little Prisma* filter using the app on my phone,  but most of the usual filters didn't look good on this photo, especially not on her face. So I decided to try one of Prisma's portrait filters and chose one called "Leya". It automatically cropped the full-length photo (rather awkwardly) and applied a kind of cubistic style to her face.  I thought the filter was way too angular, with slightly garish colors, but in spite of that, the likeness came through and caught the strength of her face in a way that was startling to me.  Wow. But I still, I thought the cubistic filter looked too harsh. But  I uploaded the image into my computer, opened it in Painter, and went to work.  I used some opaque digital pastel to soften places where I thought the Prisma filter looked awkward or the colors were unflattering.  I redrew a few lines that were off.  And I re-drew her shoulders completely because Prisma's automatic cropping had created an awkward composition, capturing just the top part of one rose from her bouquet and the top few inches or her gown.  I used digital pastel to replace all of that with a simple neckline, and used some strokes with square digital pastel to mimic the pattern used by Prisma's filter.  This isn't the full-length view that I wanted, and this isn't the image I imagined. But I am more than happy with the result because it reveals the beauty of my mother's face. To think that her whole life, my mother didn't know she was beautiful.

*Prisma uses AI, as do some of the tools I use in Painter, like Woodcut effect, and Posterizing.