Babushka

[Terri Ficenec]

David - Wow! Those wrinkles are just gorgeous.

[Garth Herrick]

David,

Again, you blow us all away with the most sensitively rendered portraits ever! Can anyone do this almost as well?

You are amazing, not only for your fine talent and technical virtuosity, but that this one pierces the heart with it's emotional content, just as all your works do.

Kudos,

Garth

[Lisa Ober]

David, will you marry me? Oops! I mean, what a spectacularly gorgeous painting! I love it. How great to paint such a beautiful and character-filled face. How great to paint it will such tender attention. How great that I get to see it. How great thou artist. LOL. I made a funny but I am serious as well. You knock me out. I've fallen and I can't get up. Wow-a-google. I read you are a teacher? Please teach me. Hurry.

[Luca Vallifuoco]

Hello,
your paint is simply..beautiful..the skin is perfect..she lives.Do you have some photos from work in progress? I think that is important to see the evolution of a paint to take secrets of development.

Bye, luca.

[Mary Sparrow]

MY GOSH David, that is simply stunning, if only I could do the same !

[David Draime]

Wow, thank you all for the kind and generous comments. It was so nice to wake up this morning to all this response! You've made my day!

Enzie, Like you, I love to render old people's faces. Always such character - I just feed off it. The scarf did take me hours (and hours and hours...). The reference photo showed every little detail in the scarf - all the various patterns, stitches - I realized early on that it was going to be counter-productive to try to render every little detail (it would certainly take away from the face). I tried a more "impressionist" approach with the scarf, and it seemed to work fairly well. Thanks for the kind words!

Brenda, I too would love to have tea with her, buy vegetables together, and then: Take a slew of photos with a better camera and with a controlled lighting situation. What a marvellous face she has.

Linda, I'm glad I finished it. I have a tendency to lose interest in a work before it's completed - I sometimes just get tired of looking at it. But I try to hold fast to my "rule" that if it's worth starting, it's worth finishing. I have to force myself sometimes. Thanks!

Originally Posted by Lisa Ober

David, will you marry me?

Sure!...but I think we should run it by your husband first. (And how many kids did you say you have?)

Luca, Thanks so much. No, sorry, I didn't take photos of the work in progress. I should do that next time.

[Michele Rushworth]

Gorgeous, David! When I opened this thread the first iimage I saw was the middle one, closely cropped, and I thought that was the whole painting.

[Julie Deane]

Beautiful! I feel like I was right there observing the way the light falls on her.

[David Draime]

Thank you Michele and Julie, you're very kind. You know, after finishing off this one, I'm feeling ready (finally) to get into doing oil portraits - a new world for me. I've got a few canvases ready to go - I just need some good references. I feel a bit unsure of myself - as in: I don't know what I'm doing - but I'm sure with all the resources here on the Forum (not to mention all the positive, loving support and encouragement of all these great artists - like yourselves!!) in time I'll figure it out. Thanks a bunch!

[Allan Rahbek]

David,

I wish that I knew some words of appraisal that was not already used on this beautiful pastel. You deserve every one and more.

I think that pastel is a powerful discipline and not second to oil-painting, but I will look forward to your attempts on the canvas.

She reminds me of my own grandma in that coat and scarf and the mild determent gaze.

Allan