A Day at the Beach, Gheno class

Technique:

I used an underpainting "old master" technique, performing the preliminary painting in a greyish blue tone. The darks were applied first, followed by a near finished tonal work after the application of white. After waiting a week for the work to dry completely, I appled thin glazes with a fast drying galkyd medium. The glazes were a mix of cadmium red and yellow ochre, giving a nice flesh tone. I then added highlights in naples yellow building up to a few areas of impasto. The darks were left lightly applied, with some additional glazes of burnt sienna. The background was laid in ala prima style, fast with cerulean blues for the azure sky and mixing in some flesh tones into the clouds to unite the background with the figure. Finally, shadow was applied to anchor the figure, and a towel was thrown in as well.

Lesson:

Do not lose the darks when applying the glazes of color, the shadows strengthen the composition.

Porcu Anatomy

These are the sketches that Frank Porcu drew during the anatomy class lesson, to show us the construction of the pelvis, and how to develop the legs both frontal and posterior views. The key is to begin with locating the anterior superior iliac spines, the so called headlights, and everything follows from there./artist

My Eye

John Wellington Fabric Study

Wellington Nude Study

This is a six week pose, for a new class I am taking, with the teacher John Wellington. You can see his work at www.johnwellington.com . It is a class designed to instruct in old master techniques. I am learning to do the underpainting, or grisage, and then slowly build up the painting with thin layers. My background or impramatura is red, the underpainting is a brown ochre, which is probably what Velasquez, Rembrandt and Ingres used. I focused on the anatomy and proportions in the first few sessions, with constant efforts at correction. Now I am laying in the color. On the most recent class, compare the model's outstretched arm, painted by the teacher as a demo, to my brush strokes. He strenghthems the shadow forms and uses very subtle strokes to blend the darks into the lights, fighting for the half-tones. In contrast, my technique seems impressionistic or expressionistic, with choppy strokes and a myriad of colors. It is a bit complicated and thus the form gets muddied. I feel I have lost my strong contrasts and need to reestablish them next session. I also need to simplify the flesh tones and not keep it so busy, with reds and oranges. Only one more class, so my work is set out.

Tepley ASL 2007

Wineries 2007

Pool Party Summer 2007

Bethesda Foutain Central Park

This is the first painting of a three day outdoor workshop with instructor Ken McIndoe, a teacher at the league. He encouraged me to paint loosely and thickly. In addition, he suggested I try the palette knife, which I did, and I got a little carried away with it. It really enboldened the colors, specially those of the people in the foreground. He taught me to keep the brushwork and lines varied, regularity is no good (unless if you have trouble with constipation). I was a little too lax in my use of concentric circles to suggest the water in the fountain, but I like the strong interplay of the clouds and trees. He liked the almost abstract nature of the green landscape behind the fountain.

Gray haired woman ASL August 2007

Couple ASL July 2007

Two Women ASL July 2007

This was a two day pose. The blond was a professional actress, and told me about all the movie stars she worked with , such as George Clooney. It was difficult to capture her , and after the first session, I wiped the canvas clean since I did not feel it resembled her. The next day, I spent a lot of time to drawing her in burnt umber, and then I committed to colors after I felt the proportions were good. She had a constant grin, and that defined her to me, as did her unworldly preternaturally bluish gray eyes.

The other woman had droopy sleepy eyelids, and a rich brown orange flesh tone. Together, they provied a fine contrast of feminine types.

Jones Beach 2001, 2006 and 2007

This most recent rendition of Jones Beach was fraught with difficulty. An unusually blustery day gave way to sudden wind gusts, and at one point the whole easel, and palette toppled into the sand. Take note of the progression from 2001 through the current day. My style continues to loosen, my brush strokes freer, my defintion less stark.

August - One month later

Early in the morning on a cloudy windy day , I endeavor once again to capture the day. Now I see red in the horizon, and darker clouds overhead. I paint the ocean with greyer tones, and the brilliant greens of earlier are subdued.

Model ASL June 2007

This is a work in progress. I learned how to construct the nose tonite, and you can almost imagine the cartilages constructing the nasal alae. I softened the shadows and united the darks, while using subtle short strokes of similar flesh tones to construct the details of the lights. She had droopy eyes and a spmewhat bored look, which I think I caught. She had large ears and frizzy hair. I like the way I highlighted the cheekbones, capturing the orbital rim. Reflected light illuninates the undersurface of her chin.

Roslyn art May 2007

Roslyn art May 2007, originally uploaded by lionheart613.

Ellen was our model for this two week pose. I painted the dress with bold strokes, finishing with a thick wide brush, with no added paint, to smooth things out and eliminate harsh lines. The tapestry in the background worked best with undiluted pure color, and after the patterns were suggested, I went back in to rework the fabric, uniting the tapestry and patterns and eliminating the "painted on" appearance. I used a bluish payne's grey for the deep shadows in the pleats of the dress and, and forcefully emphasized the hands and feet with outline or shadow. I gave the light source direction, showing that the bent knee and top of dress are bathed in light. The simplicity of the room helps focus on the model and wall hanging. Initially, I painted in a window with trees, however the teacher insisted I respond to what was actually there. The window would have imparted a very different feel. The face was simplified and I utilized subtle shades of flesh tones to contruct the facial planes. Overall, the mood is one of serenity and repose, and the sitter exudes confidence, perhaps a touch of wistfulness and longing.

At the Beach

I love the way the flesh tones are repeated in the colors of the sand, and those of the ocean in her eyes. There is a consistency in the brush strokes and style of both fore and backgounds, and the light source and shading is strong. The sun is strong, bleaching out the details of the right side of the face that in the light. The waves are not overdone, which helps to focus attention to the face. The slightly sunburnt features , including the nose and cheeks, are depicted with strong orange hues. The corners of the lips are alizaran crimson, and the nostrils are a mix of alizaran and cad red light, indicating upward reflected light from the sand. This can also be noted at the undersurface of the chin. I avoided black entirely, using a touch of Payne's grey when needed for strong darks, as in the eyeliner. This keeps the painting looking sunny and bright and muddiness is avoided. The eyes are squinting in the light, and there are similar creases at the corners of the slightly upturned lips. Payne's grey and sap green were used in large measure for the color of the sea, toned down with white and a few streaks of prussian blue throne in for good measure. I felt that green or blue on their own was too intense. I also used prussian blue to fiercely demarcate the traingle formed by the neck, hair, jaw and clavicle, accentuating the strong features.

Art Students League May 2007

The teacher said that Manet could be my muse, or perhaps Velasquez - two of my favorites. He liked my tonalities and broad swaths of color. He told me that in order to get the angle of the head right, that is looking upwards, to focus heavily on the shadows of the neck and jaw. I found this exciting, as you can note that beneath the jaw I subdivide the shadow tones into at least four segments, darkest, lighter, and even a reflected light immediately underneath the chin. The teacher emphasized the need to paint the eye within the socket, and to make sure it recedes into the dark hollows therein.

Hiroshima Survivor Drawing

P1050652, originally uploaded by lionheart613.

The building in the back is the only one that remained and is now a memorial site.

A-bomb over Hiroshima from Enola Gay

P1050600
Originally uploaded by lionheart613.

Drawing from Hiroshima Survivor

P1050588
Originally uploaded by lionheart613.