More Life Drawings

In the Open Studio sessions I attended this winter, there were different body types and ages in the models.

Some were more challenging for me to find ... what do I call it?... inspiration, beauty, grace... that certain something that makes a pose or figure interesting and aesthetically pleasurable. These ideas are, to many modern minds, rather old-fashioned. So be it. Beauty is what motivates me to make art. Without it, painting or drawing is merely an exercise.

That is not to say, I always get it. I might try on any given occasion and fail completely.

Last week I painted over a number of ugly paintings. There are probably many many more of my works that should go in the burn pile. With a little time and distance emotionally from any of my paintings or drawings, I expect more and more will wind up there. Maybe these. For now, I'll show them to you.

Pizza Night at OCU

When I was staying in OKC I called around to find open studios. One of the events I found out about was a monthly drawing and pizza night at Oklahoma City University.

Sure, I thought. But I checked it out and was glad I did. That was the intro to Mike Wimmer's open evenings of sharing the space and time there with models and other artists. Lotsa fun and cameraderie and Wimmer invited me to sit in on his portrait and figure classes in the following weeks during my OKC stay. Here are drawings from two of those pizza/drawing evenings.

Life Drawings

Drawing from the model several times a week this winter was great practice. It made it easier to put down the form quickly for short or longer poses. 

See my work by category, or purchase at my DailyPainters gallery. 

Portrait and Figure Sketches from Open Studio

I'm getting the sketches and paintings photographed now that have been piling up since the first of the year.

They're a bit out of order, as I shot some of the oil paintings before the charcoal or pastel studies.

Hang tight and I'll eventually show you all of what I did. I do plan to work a little more on a few of them, so those will come later.

These four shown here are from the Open Studio sessions in Scottsdale.

As is sometimes the case, I sketched the models in charcoal, then in another medium. (See the oil study after I did "Dainty", the third piece here, a few posts back.)

After I drew this charcoal study of Peter (at right), I painted the oil shown here.

Faces and Figures

I don't keep all my sketches, as some simply are not worth saving. However, there are a bunch from my work this winter that I am pleased with. So, to photograph and inventory them is taking some time.

I hope you'll enjoy these.

Three of these were drawn from a lovely classic looking model in Norman, Oklahoma.

The other is one of the beautiful models in Scottsdale I was privileged to draw and paint.


 
Please contact me for information on work you see here at my blog. Many of the paintings and drawings are available for purchase. 

Portrait Studies

These four paintings were done during the Artist Guild week in Scottsdale in January. The first two here were finished during the session with the model. The last two, I did additional work from reference photos to build on what I'd done from life with the model.

I do prefer doing the entire painting from life, but when that doesn't work out, a few photos can remind me of what the model looked like, so I can figure out what I need to add. Because my tendency is to add a lot of detail, I have to fight with myself to not paint in everything when there is a photo reference to see.

Having the sitter there in person is so much better than working from photos, as the personality and life of the model come through so much better. And of course, color can be seen for what it is, whether in the shadows or highlights. This is not usually the case with using photos.

More New Paintings

I'm slowly getting my new work photographed and inventoried. Here are a few more paintings for you to enjoy. Soon I'll start documenting the numerous drawings I did the past few months.

These portrait/figure studies are of models at Scottsdale Open Studio. All were painted from life during the model sessions.

Some Recent Portrait Studies

 
As I mentioned in a recent post, portraits and figurative studies have been my principle focus so far this year.

These four oils are a small sampling of my concentrations. I'll have more to show here as soon as I can get additional work photographed and inventoried.

"Mary" (in top left painting), and "Rui" (in third painting) were two more models who posed for my portrait workshop in Oklahoma City last month, mentioned in this post.

"Delicate" is a study at Open Studios in Scottsdale, and "Skip" was painted in Oklahoma City when I sat in on some sessions at OCU. I was so impressed with what I saw at OCU. Professor Mike Wimmer is doing an amazing job teaching his students fundamentals, various painting techniques, and an appreciation of beauty.

These elements of an art education are vital. I missed out on this approach in my own college years, as the emphasis was on abstract art where I was, and I struggled to learn about realism on my own. But, I figure if my eyes hold out, I'll continue to learn. I'm so thankful for time with the models this winter and some input from others.

Please contact me if you'd like me to paint a portrait or other commission.