Figurative
 

This is an example of some figurative work that I do which is intended more as genre than portraiture. I found a lovely gallery this year on the coast of Maine that liked the work and wanted to display it. The owner expressed interest in giving me a big show next year, provided that her business could hold out in this economy. Unfortunately, at this point she is not sure she can remain in business. So I am now looking for another gallery.

One issue that I have faced in painting candid paintings of people at our local farmers market is how to alter them enough that they are not identified in the resulting work. I have the verbal permission of the farmers at the market to depict them but often I will get useable shots of customers and not even know how to track them down. I think the safest thing to do is to generalize or alter the image to the point where identification is not an issue. But I am far too close to these images to know when that point is. Does anyone have any thoughts about these problems?

Mary,

Very nice work...I am impressed by the overall light and atmosphere, and the movement in the figure is very well achieved.

I also work from a combination of fotos I have taken of people and/or sights of interest and quick pen or pencil sketches I have made on the spot and although I never worry about if they (the figures) are identified in the final work, I always alter or modify them greatly from the photos. The photos are there as a very loose reference and many times I will draw the figures separately before starting the final work, trying out different poses and then maybe even altering hair colour or style and also clothing. The result is a very "general" figure that could be the girl that was seated on the table beside you or just about any other figure. Don