Alamo Door--oil, 10x8"

Step 2

I have painted over the charcoal with a Raw Umber wash. I fixed the charcoal, but it mixed with the paint too much anyway. That's no problem, but next time I'll skip the charcoal shadows, or put it on very lightly.

My tendency is to get too detailed; that's ok for a portrait, but this time I want to emphasize the beauty of her face and the gracefulness of her hand. The colors and the north light will hopefully support this vision.

Step 1

A figure/portrait painting I am starting - I have toned the canvas with Venetian Red. The background will be painted with a bluish green, but the VR will show through in places to harmonize with the same color of wrap she is wearing. This is a 16x20" canvas, I have done this much from a photo, but will try to get the model back to paint from life when I start adding color.

The drawing has been done using the sight-size approach, where the photo is positioned so that it looks the exact same size as the canvas. (the photo is much closer to me - the canvas is across the room and I must walk forward to make a mark each time.) I used vine charcoal and have indicated shadows.

Paseo de Sombra--oil, 6x9"

A smaller version of the previous post - but the main difference is, I did it much more quickly, used thicker paint, and did it on a very smooth surface. My main objective was to simplify and use more opaquely applied pigment.

Paseo de Sombra--oil, 8x10"

Done from a photo I took on the San Antonio River. You can see through the trees that the sun in shining, but here there is a tree canopy of shade. I tried to make the colors sort of jewel-like and glowing.

Houston Street Wall--pastel, 5x7"

The colors, light, shadows, and arrangement of elements in this scene made it irresistible to paint.

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