3 different completions

Elizabeth Schott · 04-02-2003, 04:53 PM

I thought I would post 3 different works in one thread, so as not to be too overwhelming!

This one is of Peggy, I have worked on this one for over 6 months. The changes have been amazing, it started with a red background which was brought to my attention as not the easiest way to learn skin color.

Later in the work I posted it in the critique section, if you would like to view the comments:

Peggy

As always, since I am in the oil learning stages, I am never sure if my pieces are complete so I would love any comments.

Thanks!

Elizabeth Schott · 04-02-2003, 04:55 PM

I did go to a museum this weekend to check out hands, and you will notice if you have followed this, I have used more of an impressionistic style and changed their position. Some may consider this a cop-out, but I would never pose a model with her hands that way again.

Here is the detail.

Elizabeth Schott · 04-02-2003, 05:01 PM

This is Katie, who posed for me for at least 20 hours. Unfortunately, I ended up working from various references and setting up a chair.

After I read Harley Brown's Enternal Truths for Every Artist (thanks Tom E. for the suggestion), I noticed how incredibly weak the composition of this piece was. The chair I initially used was rounded like her shoulders and I didn't really have a dominant value. So it was fun to try to solve these issues.

You can find the critique input at:
Katie from life

This digital is so poor, I will reshoot it and re-post the image in the am.

Elizabeth Schott · 04-02-2003, 05:03 PM

No excuses other than the digital reproductions of this are not the greatest. It is still wet and I wanted to post it with the other two.

Here is the detail, I like how the chair worked in the background fading in and out. I would love to know if I handled this correctly.

Will repost the image in the am.

Elizabeth Schott · 04-03-2003, 11:04 AM

Thank you Chris and Michele! A compliment from the two of you, make a person feel GREAT!

I was afraid that when I went back to edit the Katie post, it would not let me reload an image, so I will place them here.

A little better, the purple is not this saturated, it is barely suggested, but I went with this image instead of glare.

Elizabeth Schott · 04-03-2003, 11:09 AM

One thing I have noticed while painting with oil ala prima, is how nasty the texture gets when you rework them too much. They would dry just enough that I couldn't always scrape it off.

I guess that is why you should get it right the first time!

Here is Katie close up:

Michele Rushworth · 04-03-2003, 01:08 PM

Beth, you can sand off the dry textured paint if you want to. Try different grades of sandpaper to see what you like.

I'm now working on smooth canvas so sanded areas don't look out of place, as they might on a canvas that was rough. Also, at the end of each painting session, I go over my day's work with a fan blender so there is no texture and no ridges. I remember Bill Whitaker saying in one of his posts that, if he wants any texture, it should only be in the last layer.

Mari DeRuntz · 04-03-2003, 03:50 PM

Wow, Beth, look at the miles of canvas you're covering, and how it's paying off! There is a marked jump in quality from the first painting in this thread to the last. Brava!

I also enjoyed seeing your photo references for these; as the references grew more powerful, so did your paintings - testimony for the importance of doing research.

I know you've got an enormous workshop workload ahead; keep me posted... and good work!

Chris Saper · 04-06-2003, 05:20 PM

Administrator's note: Elizabeth's "Prayer" painitng and related posts have been moved to their own thread, here: http://forum.portraitartist.com/show...&threadid=2584