Swim Paintings

About 5 years ago I began a series of swimmer paintings in oil. This one is 36x36" and is in a private collection. I took the photo at Stacy Pool in Austin. The process was long; nothing like the paintings I do from life. Most of the series is now sold!

Value Study in Oils

It's a challenge to get ALL the values in the scene before you. Try to identify the lightest and darkest areas and then key all other values to them. Thinking in terms of posterized shapes of light vs. shadow helps to simplify the scene into something paintable. Also using a small canvas and a big brush forces you to see and paint in simpler terms.

Figure Painting from Photos

I was standing on a ladder to get this photo of Bryn Leggett in a red wig. This oil is 8x10", done on a panel I had gessoed with a heavy texture. When faces are in shadow it's important to mix correct values for the whites of the eyes. These may still be a bit too light.

Bethany in a Blue Wig- Oil Portrait

Sometimes a painting just goes right from the start. That was the case with this one. I like the blended, wet edges and the expression on the face.

Girl in a Big Hat

This is another small oil painted from a photo of a wonderful model, Bethany. For several years I have been working on paint consistency, learning to handle thicker paint. It still doesn't come naturally! I like the blue-green tones in the shadows here.

Oil Portrait

This is 11x14 and I spent about 3 hours on it. Done from life from a model named Stephanie. I want to vary my edges more and have more variety in them: soft vs. hard.

Oil Painting: Girl in a Bathtub

This is of the same model as the Girl on White Sheets. Another painter and I hired her for a photo shoot in my house. Size is 8x10" I'm trying to paint with an economy of means (few brushstrokes and details) and emphasize the elements (usually light and color) that give a "feeling" component. Is that Impressionism?

Carolyn Anderson Workshop

I love the way she paints! Went to a workshop of hers in Fredericksburg TX a few years back and painted these. Oil on wood, 12x16, 16x20.

Imprimatura

Toning the canvas before painting is something I want to do more of. This small canvas was toned with Burnt Sienna. You can see bits of the color coming through.

Foreshortening

Here are 2 nudes from an extremely foreshortened viewpoint. The torso becomes a landscape like a mountain range; you see the top edges of each level of forms going back in space.

Oil Sketch

It's good practice to try painting within very short time limits. Most of these sketches get wiped out or thrown away but they develop accuracy and speed. Here's one of the rare keepers.

Crouching Girl

Still wet! This is 5x7". I'd love to handle paint like Milt Kobayashi. With only oil as a medium the paint goes on thickly and it's easier to blend edges. The trick is not to muddy the color.

Oil Portraits /Theatrical Lighting

It's fun to occasionally light the model from below as Arye Shapiro did for this pose, done at AVAA Austin.

More Acrylic Painting

I love the non-toxic nature of acrylics but the common wisdom is they're not as beautiful/deep/glowing/brilliant as oils. This one's from a photo I took on Galveston beach.

Ruby Lamb Acrylic Painting

Burlesque Girls
are great to paint!
This is acrylic on black-gessoed canvas.
"Ruby Lamb" was posing at the very first
Dr. Sketchy/Austin at Beerland on Red River.

Size is 30x40". Done a couple of years ago...

Portrait of Waverly

This 6x6" painting was done in about 1 1/2 hours. It's of Waverly Tinsley, a lovely local model. I'm trying to get a transparent look to the darks by using extra oil medium in them.

My goal is to use no thinner at all for health reasons.

Portrait Painting

Here's a 15-minute head study of a male model with the craziest peroxide blond hair. It looked pink to me in the light so now it's part of my new "pink hair" series.

Done at Leslie Pierce's "Full Monty" session. Most of my 15-minute paintings end up getting wiped out or painted over.

Figure Painting

Finally I'm starting an art blog!

Here's a 30-minute oil sketch of Jeni Pisa
in her Rave outfit posing at AVAA in Austin.
It's inspired me to paint more pink wigs so stay tuned!
Tips from Jeni:
Spring Love is an awesome rave here this April, and check out the inspired costumes of Neon Emu on Facebook.