Nothing fascinates me more as an artist than painting from a live model. There is an unspoken dialogue that happens between model and artist, the model expressing emotion, the artist trying to capture and translate that emotion on paper or canvas.

Painting from life is much different than painting from a reference photo. People are not static like photographs. Over the course of a model session, the model may shift slightly, the lighting may change, and at the end of the session, the reference has gone home. Working from life, however, affords an artist a richness of detail and emotion that is difficult to capture from photographs, so while it is a great challenge, it is worth the effort and time.

"36 Heads" is a project I hope to complete in one year- painting 36 portraits from life.

Many artists show only their best art to the public. This blog is an attempt to offer a glimpse into the artistic process itself. Some portraits will be successful, many will not. I do not touch up the art after the model session is over- the artwork is taken home and photographed without adding finishing touches.

So many things come into play as to why some sessions are a success, others not. The atmosphere of the session, my energy level that day, even the mood of the model, these things and many more affect the final painting. Sometimes I experiment with different materials, which leads to different results.

The project began on July 26, 2011. On to the heads...



Tuesday, September 13, 2011

"36 Heads", portrait #8





















September 6, 2011, Colleen
Terry Ludwig and Unison soft pastels on PastelMat
12"x16"

Before I even got to this portrait session, I decided that my easel must be setup on the other side of the room for me to paint.  All the models thus far in this project have been facing to my left and I was starting to fear that perhaps I wouldn't be able to paint from any other vantage points- that noses in future portraits would always be pointed towards the left because that's what is what is becoming familiar.   This was a crowded session and there was a good energy in the room, and somehow I managed to squeeze into the perfect spot.  I tried a new paper for this session- and couldn't be happier!  PastelMat and Terry Ludwig pastels are a perfect marriage in my opinion.  The paper grips the soft pastels so well that little dust falls into my catch sheet when working.  The pastels stay vibrant and one can work in a painterly fashion or get fine detail with this paper.  It's soft, and won't rub off your fingertips like sanded paper.  I used a few Unisons, but mostly Ludwig pastels for this.  Colleen was great to work with- she is a dynamic model, and was in a reclining pose for this portrait.  I really enjoyed painting her skin tones and hair.  I had problems with the left side of her face (our right hand side).  The thing that bothers me the most is that the irises are not the same size, and the left eye appears more closed and is not sitting in the right spot on the face.  But overall, this is my favorite portrait in this project so far.  The PastelMat made a big difference this session.  I'm starting to get sloppy about spending time in the beginning of the portrait session measuring for correct placement of features.  In the past several portraits, I've been so eager to start applying color, and am getting away from the basics- something I need to pay more attention to.  This particular portrait makes me feel as if I'm getting somewhere with these heads...
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