Might have too many hard edges. Will see what my fav two critics say.
Portrait Society of America is currently meeting in Atlanta and running live streams on their Facebook page. The paint out TH a nite was awesome. 12 portrait painters painting four models live. Here’s the link.
Also a link to last years winners here. Tonite we think they will live stream this years winners.
Where’s my glass of wine? Kicking myself for not going. Darn it.
Margaret xoxoxo
And you start over.
Photograph to Painting with Vlad Yesileyev.
Everything I don’t want. I painted on the back of the last and it took so long to draw I didn’t want to start over drawing on the right side. Think I should have. This back of the Fabriano rough 300 just sucked up paint. No matter how dark it looked going on it always dried lighter.
I did end up drawing another on my old reliable Fluid. Only it’s not rough. More about that later.
The sketch and the photo
This one done in Waterlogue would have been better than mine.
First wash oops forgot abt the sunlit street. Sigh
Do you know what’s wrong with mine?? Too many hard edges nowhere near enough soft ones.
Sky wash done.
Coming along.
And now. The palms and the biker are too dominate too. Just an awful painting. What was I thinking of painting those palms on the right so dead black?! 😵😵😵
But I have started another. It already looks better than this one. Painting faster this time.
Margaret who might do something easy like sew or clean tomorrow. Xoxoxox
Spent this afternoon wiping out several blog posts to free up some room on my website so I can finally post again.
Chelsea. HP 140 lb fluid. 15×22″
Yesterday’s portrait. May or may not work on the background some more. 
A start. First break NO pencil. Shriek.
Burnt sienna and yellow ochre for skin with opera pink. Darks cerulean. Black burnt sienna and ultramarine.
Second break. Big things are off. Added some cad red light to the mix. 
Third break. I had to paint a background In to thin her face down. If you notice I actually moved her mouth to the left about half an inch.
Fourth break – I also lowered her forehead – it was too high. Added some darks on the left side of her cheek and on her left temple with dioxzine purple. That side was mostly in shade. A dab of turquoise above her left collarbone just because I felt like it.
Background is Cheap Joes Andrews Turquoise painted with one of his 1″ Golden Fleece flats. Got to get a new tube when I go to Asheville next month or Boone in September. I splattered it with burnt sienna. The grey is a burnt sienna and the Andrews turq.
Margaret off to book club. If you haven’t read Educated read it. Fascinating book about a family that’s a train wreck similar to Glass Castle.
Xoxoxoxo
Monday is portrait class over in Aiken. Can’t remember our models name. She has. A few issues. Forehead too high. The dent to the left of her eye is too deep but maybe her cheeks too fat. And the right shoulder needs some definition.
First break. She looks like a ghost. NO PENCIL sketch. Eeek. Always makes me nervous. But it can be done. Onward and upward.
Second break. That ghost is still there. I do t seem to make much progress drawing the beginning with paint. And it definitely stresses me out that I can’t erase it.
Third break. I get tired of poking about and slap the paint on.
I lifted bits of white to the left of her left eye but think it may be a bit too much. So I will stare at her a while and decide.
Colors used. Charles Reid palette. Used a lot of opera pink since she had a rosey glow with a mix of cad red light and cad yw light for flesh. Cerulean cobalt peacock blue burnt sienna on the face
Hair is a wash of cad yellow light first. Then yellow ochre burnt sienna cerulean mixed with burnt umber and finally cobalt mixed w Burnt umber. Her hair like a lot of blondes has a lot of greys in it cerulean makes a great grey.
Oh and that black dot on her right cheek is NOT a mole but where I touched it w my dirty pinky knuckle. Sigh.
Top is yellow ochre burnt umber alizarin and cad yellow light.
Margaret who has a headache from stressing over the painting. What we do for fun. But the sinister grunge seems to be gone. Hurrah. Xoxoxox
15×22″ Spent two and a half hours chasing Chelsea as she would turn from full frontal to the right. As soon as she relaxed a little she would loose the pose because she was twisted in her seat.
First break. NO pencil. 😵😵😵Rough block in on Co fluid watercolor paper. 140#. The paper is really a bargain for great paper. Six full sheets for $24 on amazon. Always dries just about flat no matter how soppy wet I get it. 
Second break not making a lot of progress. Adding more darks and the blouse. Lack of progress I think that was due to the continually rotating head. No excuse for that left eye. But an easy fix on this hp. Most hot press would not let you move it at all. One shot and you are done. 
Last break. That left eye shoot me. But I brought it around. Add more darks to the hair which was ultramarine and burnt umber or van dyke brown. Also I didn’t want to get the shadows dark since that would age her. She has quite a very young face. Deep shadows age people in portraits especially babies. For now. I have a to do to her list. May or may not do them. BYTW her blouse was painted in two shots with my size 16 Cheap Joes sable. First was a glaze of very watery cerulean and burnt sienna. Then after it was dry lines of the black hair mix.
Colors used Quin gold French yellow ochre burnt sienna burnt umber ultramarine cerulean vandyke brown. A hint ifocad red light
Margaret ready for a nap. Xoxoxox
At New Moon. I know. Not my usual page but it’s fun. And I like it. That’s what counts right? It’s actually a journal page. My friend Tom and I blundered into the 10th Annual Hoofbeat Parade in downtown Aiken.
Only Aiken would have a horse parade with costumes.
I drew my late lunch at New Moon. Yummm. Their Downton mess Aiken style is sooo good. Pimento cheese which I always hated as a kid and grits and ham. Yummmy.
Anyway not what I intended to post. Been a crazy day. 
Bought a new sofa at laZy boy to go with my chair. This sofa is one I actually thought about buying when I bought my current den sofa. Oopsey. Should have saved the $$$ and bought it.
I was going to draw at lazy boy but no wait time. Oh well. Lots of interesting things to draw in that place.
And old furniture listed on Facebook and Craigslist so hopefully gone soon. Fielding inquiries. It’s priced to move it out ASAP.
Margaret Xoxoxoxo putting her feet up and coloring in her book.
So hard to draw but so interesting to look at.
A sweetheart. Both the models are so nice. And did such a great job.
I tried drawing him like the second photo but was not going well at all. So I finally flipped he paper over and drew just his head and shoulders. Still a pain. Long nose huge eyes short forehead. And foreshortening of Head. Eeekkkk.
I finally got going trying to loose my edges. It was sloppy wet. Makes more problems. So I would try to let it dry. Waiting is not something I am good at. I don’t want to at least with paint. 
More progress. Loved the feathers. Scratched them in with my paint brush handle. 
More done than now. He needs some shadows around his eyes from his eyebrow to under it. Also want to paint his jacket black.
Colors used. Very few. Skin Yellow ochre cad red light and cerulean plus a small bit of burnt sienna
Hair yellow ochre cerulean and burnt sienna. Maybe a cab of burnt umber.
Jacket manganese blue and burnt sienna.
Tracy kept the models til five so we had an extra hour. I moved and started another painting. Poor Carver had been modeling ALL day from 9-5 by the time he finished. I know he’s sore tonight. 
My 45 minute one. I wasn’t striving for a likeness just lost edges and letting paint mix on the paper.
Can’t wait to paint these photos of John. Love the pose.
a huge boat passing by.
Storm heading into Savannah.
Night night.
Margaret last day of class😔xoxoxox 💤💤💤💤💤
#charlesreid #watercolor #art #painting #artist #painter #aquarelle #fabriano #flowers #allaprima #transparent #flower #savannah #georgia #lostedges #artist #artinthemountains
Home again home again. Laundry and nap not necessarily in that order.
Materials used Neocolor II Caran d’Ache and #140 Fabriano Artistico
Today was life drawing at USA Aiken and the lovely Elena was our model.
She’s been thru quite a few stages. This is where she is now though thinking of lightening her right eye. I think it’s still a little dark.
Here’s how she looked after the first twenty minute break. That lemon yellow caran d’ache had been calling my name and saying use me use me!!!
TIP I take pics while I am working on it so I can see how it looks from a distance. You can really see your mistakes when you do this. And they are handy for a WIP work in progress blog post!!👍
My friend Ruth said she didn’t like the yellow and could I make her peachier. Ruth is usually right so I did. I also needed to lighten the shadows on her face which was making her look too old.
I lifted the shadows with a good stuff hogbristle oil paint brush and blotted off with a bounty towel. That#140 Fabriano Artistico is tough paper. Always amazes how you can wipe off the Fabriano.
I also had to narrow her right shoulder and lift both of them up a bit on either side of her neck. I love that hogbristle brush. It lets you do the lifting of color a smidge at a time.
Thanks for looking.
Margaret xxx
WIP – Ilenia – 30″x 18″
Acrylic on board
I have had…or should I say 24 hours?? ALL my iphoto pics disappeared around 11 pm last nite and my iphone died today…supicious I have a virus…guess I will download some antivirus…but in the meantime its day 471 and I have to post a blog dont I??? As you know its Saturday…which means life modeling at USC Aiken….I had originally intended to go urban sketching downtown but did not feel up to it with the bronchitis I have had…hmmm do you think my computer caught it???
Tom offered to drive me and I said yes…I think I may have turned the corner finally!! HALLELUJAH!! BUT back to life modeling..you arent here to hear me natter on about all my viruses lol…
HARD BOARD – what is it? My friend Drew cut up a sheet of hard board for me. It is sold near the peg board at big box stores at $14 a 4×8′ sheet. Hardboard is what we used to call masonite…slap some gesso or house paint on it and you are good to go for acrylic and two layers of gesso for oil. ALOT of board for the price…try matching canvas with that cost! NOT happening. Like plastic bags it will be here long after we are all gone. If you drop it on the corners it tends to chip but otherwise great stuff…I have some that I painted on in collage that still is in great shape years later.
Brushes were 1/2 hog bristle and a 1/3″ filbert and a cheap house painting brush for the background. THe house paint brush is the kind that sheds hair…you get about 8 of them for a few dollars at michaels or lowes…great fun to paint with.
SO how did I paint Ilenia?? Colors used cerulean, Golden Nickel Azo gold, titanium white and pyrrole red with a dab of ultramarine blue…thats it..nothing else. I made the flesh by mixing the white with pyrrole red and Nickle Azo Gold. Cerulean was used to make the greys and lavenders as was ultramarine blue. The black and dark browns are ultramarine blue and pyrrole red.
I drew her first with the Nickel Azo Gold with the smaller filbert. Measured her and she stands 7 heads tall…her legs and feet could use more work…maybe tomorrow or maybe never lol..
I drew her head first..then marked the seven heads noting where each head length ended. I also dropped imaginary plumb lines off of her chin to see where her body lined up…also horizontal lines to check on her arms..I had one elbow much too low for a while….I also checked the negative spaces between the arms and how the one leg hit the chair, where the chair seat lined up with the right leg.
So what more is there to do…her feet could use some work. The background needs to be darkened…probably ultramarine to make her pop. Today I was into having fun with the paint…trying to be accurate but if I wasnt I didnt care…
11 days till we leave for Paris!!
THanks for reading!!!
Margaret xxx
always fun sketching at Al Beyers studio at USC Aiken. Our band of intrepid artists slogged thru the torrential rains for fun and painting in Aiken this morning. Our model was the lovely Alexendra.
Had a tough time drawing her. No idea why because I can accurately knock out quick sketches in minutes.
I also think she needs a good crop but can’t decide quite how.
She’s been through several revisions. This is the current version.
In this one her forearm left arm is too thin. The breast is too flat so I enlarged the breast hoping to make it rounder and raised the upper arm and widened the forearm. I also rounded the hip a bit.
My favorite part of the painting is her right hand. I made it pop forward using negative painting using cerulean and burnt umber.
This is one of the crops I tried. Not loving it.
Painting is done on #140 cheap joes kilimanjaro. I used DS Quin coral with Holbein yellow ochre for the skin tone. Cerulean and burnt sienna make up most of the shadows. The very dark lines delineating the body parts are burnt umber and ultramarine blue.
TIP: One thing I like to do is convert the finished painting to black and white to compare it to the shadows on my original photo also converted to black and white of the model or person I am painting. Converting the original picture allows you to see the darks and lights easily and to not worry about the colors in color photo. The darks and lights are more important than if the eyes are blue or the hair is brown. Most people don’t get the darks dark enough. This way you can. 
The darks after I left the life modeling session this morning.
The darks as they are now. Can you tell the difference?!
Thanks for looking.
Margaret McCarthy Hunt Art 