Kelly on Ice-my first custom panel

[Lisa Ober]

Originally Posted by Jimmie Arroyo

Oh good grief, you know I gotta chime in. Lisa, Lisa, Lisa. You REALLY think you need to slow down with the pastels? This is amazing, simply AMAZING.

A couple of things that bothered me have already been mentioned; the eye and the shadow behind her. I'm gonna take a pic of mine at eight hours, and most will be thinking "Dang, how are you going to save that?"

Have you seen the work of Jane Lund, her work is hard to find on the net. You might find some poor quality ones, but I remember an article on her in maybe the Pastel Journal and they had good pics. Anyway, her stuff was very detailed. I believe some could take up to 18 months to complete. I think. This kinda reminds me of it, but 17 months, 29 days, and 16 hours quicker.

You rock!

Jimmie, Jimmie, Jimmie, YOU ROCK (and you are funny) and if there is one thing I know about you in this short but pleasant experience so far, it's that you always do "save" it. In fact, yours never seem in any danger. Never. Thanks. I am definitely going to put in the darker shadow near the shoulder and I will revisit the eye. Sometimes I just get sick of these "practice" things though and I want to chalk it up to experience albeit short and sassy.

You know, as you draw you are probably humming a tune, pacing yourself, thinking in depth about your composition (which shows) and enjoying the experience while I listen to music most people at my age laugh at it's so obnoxious, drink soda like it's going out of style (no caffeine though) and color at a pace that would make you think I just saw a ghost or worse. It's almost like a disease. I think by doing more than vignettes I will add lots of time to my pieces. Maybe one day I will spend a week on one! I shudder at the thought but there is still hope.

Hey, thanks. Your comments always brighten my day.

[Lisa Ober]

Thanks Jean! Yes, I love creating my own texture. I found it a little tricky to get as much of a texture as I would like (without lines) but after a few layers of the ground I think I have a formula. I almost like it straight out of the jar with a roller and then followed quickly with a soft brush. Can this stuff be sanded? I haven't tried that yet.

Yes, with photo shoots I will try to plan more in advance. Great advice. I didn't plan at all to use any of the photos that showed hands and so I only had one or two to choose from and they weren't good. Still, I liked the facial expression so I went with the best I had. I hope to plan better if I can ever get a commission that goes beyond a vignette. I've been reading up in the reference photo section in preparation for what I hope will be an improved system for photos. Since I do so many children's portraits odds are I won't be working strictly from life any time soon so I better get it down if I want to get past this rut I feel I have been in.

Again, thank you so much for your advice on the pastel ground. It has really been helpful and saved me money.

[Lisa Ober]

JIMMIE, perhaps you have a fever or are coming down with something. Have you been eating properly? Taking your vitamins? I just looked at Jane Lund's work and I think you might want to rethink putting her name in a sentence that has anything to do with me. WOW. I have never seen her work until now but let's just say I had to get a tissue to wipe off the tears. If only...

[Sharon Knettell]

I just got back from California and I am so pleased to see this wonderful piece. Don't you just love the Golden's Acrylic Medium for Pastel!. It can be adapted to just about any pastel technique and made into unlimited sizes! The only limits are ways to frame it!

You have a well thought out piece that is well designed. One thing I have learned over the years and is really helpful to portraiture is editing. When you use a photograph for a reference, it is hard to know when to stop with the detail. Leaving out or enhancing details is a subtle art that can really add a personal aesthetic to a painting.

That said, I find The eyes and the eyebrows a little harsh, especially the eye to the left. It does seem stretched out and could use a softer edge. The left cheek could be simplified and softened a bit as well. The frown marks between her eyes could be eliminated as well as the throat line, as Linda pointed out. You don't have to put every thing in.

I usually work on a photo print, with oils, adding cheek and lip color if needed and modifying and softening areas until it still looks like the subject but better.

One of the best ways to help with this process is to continue working from life. You are usually limited by time and money to make quicker decisions and are usually farther away so you are not concentrated on the details. It will also help you define a more personal style.

I hope this helps.

[Garth Herrick]

Lisa,

Seriously, is there still any room left in your next portrait intensive workshop this summer? I should seriously consider attending. I hope you will do anther eight hour demonstration for the benefit of the class! That would be wonderful to experience. What are the dates again?

Wonderful inspired work, Lisa!

Garth

[Lisa Ober]

Sharon, welcome back! Yes, I really love the pastel ground. I also love that I don't have to special order panels and pay a fortune. What a great tip.

I definitely have the disease of not knowing when to stop on the details. For me the details are the fun part but I guess I should think more about flattering people so I can keep getting work. I know I wouldn't want anyone to paint me the way I actually look. So, I am for sure wiping out the neck line and I think I will heed your suggestion to soften the eyebrows. I should say that the eyes and eyebrows are Kelly's most stunning feature in person. Her eyes are VERY dark and deep set and her eyebrows look drawn on even though they aren't. They are just perfectly plucked (which I can't imagine since it hurts so much). Still, since this is practice and could be a sample I think it is right to do what you suggest.

You can put oils on a photograph? Regular oil paint? Where have I been?! I can use Photoshop and follow your advice but I didn't know oils could be put on photos. See, I am showing how much I don't know.

I love working from life but barely get the chance since I do so many children's portraits in pastel. The local university does have evening model sessions that can be attented. I've been thinking of doing that again. It's great for honing drawing skills. You are right about stepping back from the painting more when working from life. Photos just aren't the same but I try to make due with what I can.

Thank you very much for your help. I feel privileged to have you respond and I'm grateful for your input.

Garth, you blinked and missed my speed painting workshop? See! You can't blink. The next one will be yesterday (wink). But seriously, it will be decades before there is any hope of a worthy workshop from me--and neither of us are likely to live long enough to see one (even if you are 20). I appreciate your thoughtful comment though. Thank you. I have another speed item to post once I get time to take a photo of it. I did it earlier tonight. You can tell me if it is a wonderful experience or not. Don't hold your breath in anticipation however and please don't blame it on the cute subject.

Thanks to both of you!

[Elizabeth Schott]

Lisa, this is lovely.

Is there anyway you can post a super - extreme closeup? I would like to see your stroke detail. Do you blend all of your applied pastel?

I think someone mentioned the chroma change in the hands? Personally I think you have them right - a woman of her age would have hands with a bit more red in them.

I'll look forward to that close up! IhopeIhope

[Lisa Ober]

Elizabeth, thank you so much! I also appreciate your comments on the hands. I had a teacher in college who told me the same thing about adult hands though I can't say I really had that on my mind.

Please find the close up you requested. If you want a higher quality version feel free to e-mail me and I will e-mail one back to you. I have found that with this new pastel ground I do not need to blend quite as much with the texture I have been able to create. It sort of blends itself. I do some smudging of course with my fingers. I like a softer look for skin. In fact, my finger was bleeding earlier (I thought of Jimmie and his Wallis warinings) and I had to put a liquid bandage on it! That's the first time that has ever happened to me. I don't think it's the rough texture. I think it has more to do with my pastels getting larger and slightly more complicated.

So, I hope this helps. It's the clearest I could get. Color is off but the texture should show. I think it has a similarity to linen. I brush in both directions with the ground. Thanks again for replying!

[Elizabeth Schott]

Thanks for the close-up Lisa.

You know the guys just don't understand that by this lovely ladies age we have those reddish hands from smacking those fellas around!

I will need to search about your panel process. I have used the wrong material for the backing before and the sanded primmer really warped it, rendering it useless. But this is looking very promising!

Sorry to be so intrusive, but when you say brushing, do you actually mean with a brush or those cracking fingers of yours?

Hint for the fingers, the texture of the paper or panel can reek havoc but this is also compounded by the pastel actually drying out your skin and cuticles - I don't know if you have noticed this. I try and wear latex gloves when I can stand it, it also keeps your skin's natural oils (well what's left of them) off your surface. I am pretty sure you knew all this, but just in case someone reading might not of...

[Sharon Knettell]

Lisa,

Actually they use oils for the tinted photo technique, which gave me the idea to do that.

Yes, regular oils and a Q-tip. You can really play with it. The older emulsion style prints work better than the new digital prints. In the digital prints the color can come off if you want to make to many changes that require wiping.

I hope my comments did not lead you to believe that I did not think that this was not an admirable piece.