Figurative

[Mary Cupp]

This is an example of some figurative work that I do which is intended more as genre than portraiture. I found a lovely gallery this year on the coast of Maine that liked the work and wanted to display it. The owner expressed interest in giving me a big show next year, provided that her business could hold out in this economy. Unfortunately, at this point she is not sure she can remain in business. So I am now looking for another gallery.

One issue that I have faced in painting candid paintings of people at our local farmers market is how to alter them enough that they are not identified in the resulting work. I have the verbal permission of the farmers at the market to depict them but often I will get useable shots of customers and not even know how to track them down. I think the safest thing to do is to generalize or alter the image to the point where identification is not an issue. But I am far too close to these images to know when that point is. Does anyone have any thoughts about these problems?

[Carlos Ygoa]

Mary,

Very nice work...I am impressed by the overall light and atmosphere, and the movement in the figure is very well achieved.

I also work from a combination of fotos I have taken of people and/or sights of interest and quick pen or pencil sketches I have made on the spot and although I never worry about if they (the figures) are identified in the final work, I always alter or modify them greatly from the photos. The photos are there as a very loose reference and many times I will draw the figures separately before starting the final work, trying out different poses and then maybe even altering hair colour or style and also clothing. The result is a very "general" figure that could be the girl that was seated on the table beside you or just about any other figure. Don