Virginia Cobb Workshop

Today is the last day of the workshop so gotta go but here are two of my favorites that I did so far.

I'm taking Virginia Cobb's workshop this week at Studio in the Woods here in The Woodlands.  It is very fun so far just as it was last year. She has a way of opening up the idea of abstract painting in a way that makes it understandable and accessible that I have never gotten before. Great class, wonderful teacher!  I will try to post some photos of my work tomorrow.

Saturday Morning Model Session

We had a great new model yesterday. It's always fun to have someone new to draw.  This is just one of the sketches I did.

Still unfinished!

I was hoping to finish this painting of our wonderful model George, but I could only stay an hour and a half before I went to my critique group so I will have to finish from my photo on my monitor.  Almost like being there.  Much better than just a printed photo anyway.

Saturday Model session

This is a pose that I transferred to an 8"X 8"  panel (mounted on wood frame)from a sketch I did in Saturday's model session.  I had planned to finish it out as an oil painting but I took it to my critique group yesterday and everyone there thought I should just leave it as is.  This is just what I intended to be the underpainting.  I was so looking forward to painting on it!  I will live with it a bit and see if I can resist. 

Wednesday and Thursday's Efforts

This is another area of the "Patron's Courtyard" portrait mural.  I've been working on this family for the last two days. Not finished obviously and missing one of the subjects who is on another board. 

  The portraits are catagorized by the size of the head from chin to hairline.  These are quite a bit bigger than the Hometown hero portrait of Tuesday.  HTH portraits are 3" and these are actually 5" so they take longer to do. 

   I find painting portraits in acrylic very difficult because the paint is hard to blend so I have taken to putting layer over layer until it looks right.  I know there are blending mediums and slow drying mediums but since the portraits are so exposed to the elements I like to try to keep them as pure as possible in hopes they will last better. When they are finished I coat them with a sealer.

Tuesdays work

This is one of the "Hometown Heros" from this past year.  It's acrylic on plywood prepared with gesso. I didn't finish his shirt yet because part of it is on another board that is usually installed next to this one and I want the paint to match on both sides.

   Hurricane Ike destroying the huge tent like cover over the Mitchell Pavilion which is now being repaired.  During the remodeling the 8 mural boards were removed to make way for the heavy equipment passage.  This is such a wonderful opportunity for me because I now get to bring the boards home to my studio and actually work inside to paint and restore them!  I have three now and have spent quite a bit of time mostly cleaning and resealing them and am now getting down to the fun part of getting caught up on the portraits.  Fortunately the boards were not damaged in the hurricane but the elements have taken their toll on the acrylic paint over the years.  I have until May to restore them before they have to be reinstalled.  Okay, back to work!

Mondays efforts

It's been fun getting back to oils in the Monday paint group. We had a wonderful model who will be sitting for 3 Mondays in a row so that we can do a finished painting completely from life.  I missed the first session and started this in the second session and will try to finish it next week in the last session.  I had a good start with my charcoal drawing and then laid in my value patterns with a thinned dark and all was well. Then as usual I got in a hurry as time was running short and rushed my colors trying to get everything blocked in.  When I got home I scraped everything off with my pallet knife to have a fresh smooth surface to start again next week.  This is what was underneath.  I chose to crop his head to divide my negative shapes and make them more interesting. This is something I picked up from studying with Polly Hammett.

More noodleing on the Cara portrait!

I couldn't help myself on a little noodling on the Cara portrait sketch. she is such a lovely girl and you just want to try to make her as perfect as she is....it's hard to just leave it, as you probably know if you are a painter. Sold

Last attended Monday Model session

 I wish I were more of a technogeek!  I can publish my posts but haven't quite figured out how

to reply to comments!  I have had a few nice comments and love to read them and visit the sender's site.  I also like to see what blogs other's follow regularly (something else I haven't gotten to yet) and have found some wonderful other blogs to look at.  So Many creative people out there!  Thanks to those who have commented!

  

   Here is my latest version of the last model we had in Monday paint group.  Cara is a college student and marathon bike rider.  She posed for us with her bike gear and bike  and then a sitting pose.  I could still change a few things like the light on her neck, but I like it for now.