Aaron Robert Saper: A Gift to My Son on His Bar Mitzvah

[Chris Saper]

Oil on Linen, mounted on Masonite
24" x 18"

It's been some years since Aaron has been interested in having his picture taken for a painting, so I am thrilled that he wanted me to paint this piece.

I worked this piece in what is a fairly typical pattern for me: planning carefully the placement, and finding the center (on a rigid surface, I have no "fudging" opportunity to crop out compositional error at the end), then sketching with Terra Verte, as in Verdaccio. I virtually completed the background before beginning the figure. I find that this is the best way for me to judge value and color, against a somewhat complete context that is already established.