Jordan Family
 

HI all

Here's a commission I stumbled upon last year while striking up a conversation with the owner of a storage place I am renting from. His ceilings at home are very tall, and I look forward to post a photo of this hung - The painting is 7 FEET tall and 38" wide. The photo(s) I took last summer.

full size

closer -

close up

Linda, this is absolutely beautiful. Can you please give more details as far as posed/photos or both. The amount of time it took? The whole family must have been thrilled. Once again, beautiful.

Linda,

I think this is an amazing portrait. I like the composition, I like the vertical stretch you have given the scene, and I like the fresh airy feel to the overall. You have conquered what must have been a frightening undertaking.

Linda, This is just marvelous!

Tell more!

Beautiful work Linda! I'll wait impatiently for more details. I especially like the backlighting, you've done it so well.

Jean

Linda, this is gorgeous. Time to raise your prices!

So many in a single portrait and it doesn't look awkward. Fabulous job, love the color.

Linda!
 

Fantastic! I wish I could see this in person, somehow I have a feeling my monitor isn't doing it justice!

Thanks everybody - I really appreciate it. Yes this was kind of a terrifying endeavor - for the most part because of the proportions. It was a challenge determining a composition that could hold everybody in the such a vertical format. Another factor was that the painting is to be hung quite high (the bottom will be at 5' off the ground) So I planned the composition so you'd be looking up at them. When I took the photograph, I set the camera about 35 feet away down from them on a steep hill. We timed it so we'd have the sun at their backs (to get the rim lighting and to avoid direct light in their faces) Taking the photo from farther allowed to get everyone in without using alot of horizontal space. I just kept taking pictures and posing them differently, then coming closer to get close up reference photos of each.

Very impressive. You converted a most dificult challenge into a home run.

This is beautiful - what a great commission to land as well.

Thanks very much Kim and Marvin - it means alot to me.

It's funny about posting in the "unveilings" section. Before turning pro, I used to post more in the work in progress even if I'd finished the painting in my eyes. As a full time artist, I prefer to post in the unveilings, not to avoid critique, but, well, the painting is done and I've given it to the client most times already. So it's tough to open any individual painting up for a massive critique, but should anyone see a trend in my work that I should address, please let me know.

I like it
:sunnysmil

:thumbsup: Nice work.

...
 

...

Thank you Tim - I really appreciate it.

( It's so odd to feel so exasperated as I grope to improve, and yet to feel so content to just be producing something that touches someone - I mean hey, this is just painting, not neurosurgury. No one is gonna die just because I'm learning on the job, so have some fun and enjoy...)

This fellow should let you have the whole place free for a lifetime!

Really beautifull, well designed. The chirldren are charming and as luminous as the background.

Great work!

Sincerely,

Wonderful handling of a difficult and large undertaking. You have a right to be very pleased with yourself.

Carl - I assume that others have this wierd relationship with their paintings - there's things you see in them that make you smile and silultaneously you see things that make you wince with pain. Every painting is that way. I assume this means I'm human, still learning, yet earning my "paycheck", and helping people feeling special.

Sharon - Thanks very much, and I hope to see you in Boston next month!

Linda, I like the sunnyness of the portrait. The group pose feels so natural and spontaneous, which gives the convincing impression that everyone was indeed posed this way in a single reference. Is this true or did you need to edit the group?

I did a similar portrait once in this scale and format, but I had to invent a stump and move an arm to display a big emerald, on later request.

Congratulations,

Garth

Linda,
I don't know about others, but I have the very same relationship with my work. Likely many others here do as well. When you are pushing to improve, that critical eye can't help but sneak in there along with the enjoyment even after it's all done. I take it as a sign of continuing growth that I constantly see things that can be or need to be improved.

I've been over my own work millimeter by millimeter in the creation of it, and so I'm likely see it differently than anyone else because of that, at least for awhile I do. That's why I like to turn them to the wall for a week or more, near the end, then look again. That's if there is time.

A side note for those here who have not painted large scale work before, and then undertake it. When in progress of large scale work, snapping a digital picture to look at can help highlight things hidden to you by the newer scale. It's useful to do that while the work is in progress. Actually it helps with regular sized work as well, though to a lesser degree.

It would be nice to see this installed. I think you handled the overhead viewpoint very creatively. :thumbsup: