April
 

A pastel I just finished of a former student. I'm pretty happy with it, especially that I did it in about 20 hours - which is fast for me. Last year, April was one of my most talented art students.

Thanks for looking!

pastel on paper, approx. 19 1/2" X 24 1/2".

!!!!
My turn to stand in awe at your work!
What a classic piece--so elegant in pose and execution.
My hat

This is intensely beautiful.

What a delight.

Beautiful David,
a classic beauty with a lot of elegance !

Lovely in every way. This is one to come back to.

It's beautiful, David.
I like the simplicity and elegance, the great variety of edges and the subtle value changes.
At first I thought it was an oil. :)

David, what a great portrait! She's very much alive, human, modern, in a classic pose. The great things about your work is that you seem to see the beauty in all your subjects. You have a way of conveying your appreciation of these individuals without idealizing them. This one is a perfect example of that talent and vision.

Thank you all very much. I'm glad you like it.

Allan, that makes me very happy. I really need more color work in my portfolio - for a future website, contacts with brokers, etc. - and though I'm currently in the middle of two oils, it is going painfully slow. This was only about 20 hours, so now, I think if I can knock out 4 or 5 of these pastels - well, it would be great for said portfolio.

Alex, thanks so much! I know we've discussed this before, but I really believe that if you look - really look - at any individual, there is great beauty there. On the surface, some appear to be more beautiful than others. But at the heart of it, I think every human being is essentially... noble (though, at times, we have ways of not living up to our potential... :bewildere ) and it is that nobility, that excellence, that quiet, penetrating beauty that I am mostly interested in depicting. And I'm happy you think they don't come off as being idealized...I do worry about that.

I notice that when my students do a series of life drawings, with them each taking turns posing; or when they do each others' portraits - I can tell that they gain a whole new appreciation and respect for the student that they are drawing. By intently gazing, and constantly "repeating the gaze," they see qualities in each other that they hadn't noticed before. It's wonderful...magic. The power of art.

David

David, this is fabulous work! I am so glad you have posted it. Would you be so kind and tell us the paper you used? Grate stuff!!! Good for you.

Wish you all the best