Flowergirl

[Michele Rushworth]

I have just "finished" a portrait of a little five-year-old flower girl. (As Harley Brown writes, a portrait is only truly finished when the client comes to take it away!)

I am having trouble lately attaching images for some reason, so Cynthia has kindly agreed to post the photos themselves.

Please let me know what you think of it. The painting is 48" x 36" in size.

[Cynthia Daniel]

Awesome Michele! I love these.

[Joan Breckwoldt]

Michele,

This should be in the unveilings section, in my opinion, it's beautiful! You have done a masterful job on this little girl. Her skin, her hair, the bow, it all has such a nice feeling to it.

Since it's in the critique section though, I looked for something to critique (!) and the only little bitty thing that sticks out to me is the vase of flowers. It looks a bit like it's floating. I think it's because there is a reflection on the floor in front of the vase, but on my monitor it looks like the vase is floating since the dark floor is not apparent directly below the vase. It may look totally different to you in real life, but I thought I would mention this very minor detail.

I would love to hear about this commission since I've read about your unveiling party in a previous post. Did the client know they wanted a full length portrait? Where did the commission come from, etc... Will you have an unveiling party for this portrait?

Joan

[Linda Brandon]

Hi Michele,

Those edges just melt away so beautifully, they take your breath away. This is another outstanding, charming painting - I love her expression. Well done!

By the way, this is a big canvas, did it take you substantially longer than usual to plan it or do the actual painting of it?

[Michele Rushworth]

To answer your questions: This commission came to me at the one and only outdoor art show I do. The mom walked up to my booth last fall to inquire and phoned me the next day to set up a meeting. (I will be painting this girl's two brothers also, one this year and the other in a couple of years since he was only born last fall.) The mother knew exactly what she wanted from the start -- full length pose, this dress, the flowers, etc.

The family moved to the Seattle area from Atlanta recently. I get the feeling this is a rather "Southern" style of portraiture, very formal.

It did take a bit longer than I expected given the size of the canvas.

I'd like to have an unveiling party if the client would do one. She hasn't seen the painting yet. So far the only unveiling I've had was because I gave the client a financial incentive, but that may not always be the case. I have suggested the idea to several other clients but so far none have agreed.

[Marvin Mattelson]

Very nice. Since this is the critique session here's my take. I realize my observations are based on your photo"s values and colors so there is a distinct possibility they may not fly when viewing the original.

I think the painting suffers from a sameness of edges and colors and values which has a somewhat flattening effect. I find the bottom of the column to be too light bringing the background too far forward. I would like to see the top half of the column with much less contrast in the modeling. I'd actually like to see the column disappear or come close.

The column's right edge and the wall corner to the right of her divide the painting into equal thirds and she feels trapped in the middle third.

I think the color in both sets of flowers are too similar in intensity. I would like the front flowers shifted in hue toward red purple. The front flowers need more chroma. I also think the most forward flowers in the bouquet shoul be painted more sharply. The same goes for the forward part of the skirt and the front of her bangs.

I also would soften and darken the eye highlights and loose the highlights in her teeth. The front of the bangs should be sharper than the teeth. Sharpen the highlight on the ball of her nose.

Over all you did a great job and I'm sure your client will be pleased.

[Jane Bradley]

I love the atmosphere and the softness of this portrait - the child has a glow about her. Beautiful!!

[Kimberly Dow]

This is lovely Michele. I may be too late to be mentioning anything, but the only thing I long for when looking at this is a few sharper edges - the girl is so beautifully soft, I just keep feeling like the background/flowers should have a few edges somewhere so that it is not all so soft.

[Mike Dodson]

Michele,

This is a lovely painting, as is all of yours. Your handling of edges, I think, is just superb!
Since this is in the critiques section, I will offer a few observations. The column is a real attention getter for me, primarily due to the extreme light value. If you could lower the value I think it would push it back some and become "non-competitive". I agree also with Marvin concerning the highlight's in the eyes and on the teeth. I think other than the highlights on the teeth, that the teeth/mouth are painted as well as I've seen anywhere. They appear very natural.

Beautiful!

[Michele Rushworth]

Thanks, everyone, for your very helpful input. I have made some changes based on many of the suggestions.

I'll deliver the painting in a few days and then move on to photographing her little brother in a week or so.

Thanks again for helping me make this a better painting!