Gesture Portrait, Jeff Watts Workshop

Monochrome Gesture Portrait

On the third day of the Jeff Watts workshop, we created quick gesture portraits of a model who sat all day for us.  I decided to concentrate on my lights/darks and edges (and besides, my knees were knocking from nervousness) so I stuck with the monochrome portrait.  I learned how to pick out abstract shapes in the face to make it more interesting to look at.  I also learned to make edges disappear so that the viewer has to fill in some information.

Gesture Portrait, Jeff Watts

And here is Jeff's fantastic full color portrait, painted in a single sitting.  He starts with transparent washes of color over most of the canvas, then goes in with smaller brushes to pick out the abstract shapes that he sees.  He constantly moves all around the canvas, laying in new color, then going back to paint shapes next to every brush stroke.  A very difficult technique to attempt, but I learned so much just watching him paint!

Late Summer in the Forest, 9x12"

I want to invite all my friends and artists to come to the Art in Nature event on September 23rd at the Crabtree Forest Preserve in Barrington.  I'll be there, rain or shine, painting out in nature.  Artists will be painting all through the forest that day, and there will be music and children's activities, too.  Plenty of art to see and purchase!  The hours will be 10:30-4:00.  I hope I'll see you there!

Figure Studies, Jeff Watts Workshop

On the second day of the workshop, we got down to the serious business of painting figures using burnt umber and white.  I learned something very important that day-- I tended to smooth things out on my figure studies, which made them boring!  Jeff suggested that I paint abstract shapes in different directions on the model to make them interesting to look at.

And here's a reason that figure studies are difficult.  You have to understand the anatomy underneath it all and build out from there.  Here is an example of how Jeff starts a figure study.

He plots the skeleton and major muscle structures before he begins to paint.  Taking the time to study anatomy is well worth the effort when painting figures and portraits.  He showed us an App that he uses called "Visible Body" which shows the skeleton and muscle groups from every layer and angle.  It even shows the muscles in motion.  I hope that I'll have the discipline to delve into this and stick with it!

Jeff Watts Workshop, Day 1

"Hemal", 12x16",  Ann Feldman

I'm just back from Encinitas, California, where I spent a week in a portrait/figurative workshop with Jeff Watts.  First of all, I'd like to say that being a serious student in Encinitas over Labor Day is nearly impossible.  Constant parades of surfers on their way to the beach and the sound of clinking Margarita glasses on neighboring decks were quite a distraction!   I decided to be good during the day and enjoy Encinitas in the evenings.  My mom and sister-in-law breezed through and enjoyed the good life with me, too.  A good balance, I think...

The first day, we watched Jeff demo a monochrome pick-out (below), then we tried our hand at it with a wonderful model/student named Hemal.  The drawing is laid down on a white panel and sprayed with fixative.  Washes of Burnt Umber are painted over the entire surface, and the darks are laid in with smaller brushes and the light areas are "picked out" with cotton swabs, cotton cloths, and paper towel.  

"Demo Head Study", 12x16", Jeff Watts

Don't let Jeff's painterly style fool you-- he works slowly and methodically throughout the painting process.  He constantly looks for anatomical abstractions and paints them in one by one, connecting them as he goes along.  Artist Note: He told us not to forget that edges and value are non-tolerant.  They must be rendered correctly.  Composition and color are where the creativity and fun happen.  

I'll be posting more from this very enlightening workshop.  Stay tuned!

Breakfast in Montreal, 6x8"

This is a quick oil sketch of my niece Jorie having her breakfast "al fresco" in Montreal. I used a hardboard that had been coated with several thick layers of gesso to give the painting a nice rough impressionistic feel from the beginning.

So Much for Galoshes, 8x10"

I was lucky enough to snap this scene in Montreal last month.  I couldn't help but smile at the never-ending battle of parents everywhere who try to keep their kids dressed appropriately for the weather, only to turn around and find that all their attempts are for nothing!  To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Galoshes.

DEMO ANNOUNCEMENT:  If you are an artist in the Chicago area, I'll be giving a painting demonstration for the Palatine Art League on September 7th.  It would be great to see you there!  Email posstroke@sbcglobal.net for information and to register.

The Dock at First Light, 10x8"

Ann's Painting

If you are interested in this painting please click here.

Once a week or so, I join my good friends Frankie and Barb (both wonderful teachers and painters!) to kayak around Lake Zurich in the early morning before we start our day.  Yesterday, the light was so glorious that we vowed to return the next day at first light to paint.  

Frankie's Painting

Frankie's website

Barb's Painting

Barb's website

We spent about an hour and a half on the dock, pointed in the same direction.  I love coming up for air at the end of an intense painting session to see how each artist interpreted the same scene.  Each person leaves their distinctive "fingerprint" on the scene, and we each chose to highlight something different in our painting.

Thanks Frankie and Barb, what a great way to start the day!

The Survivors, 6x6"

I respect any flower that can withstand our drought-plagued summer here in the Midwest.  These tiny beauties are my tough survivors (I'm so proud of them!).

Tea Roses, 10x8"

A student at Mainstreet brought in a little cluster of tea roses from her garden and put them on the front desk.  They were so perfect I couldn't resist painting them.

To bid on this painting, please click Ann Feldman Tea Roses.

Floral Fantasy, 16x12"

This is another piece that I recently shipped off to the East End Gallery in Nantucket.  I painted this one in one marathon session.  The three yellow flowers were established first, and then the rest was added, subtracted, moved, and painted over about a thousand times.  This process is fun and frustrating at the same time, and I'm left with lots of very wet paint on the canvas and on myself.  I do wish the Fed Ex man would alert me when I open the door with a purple mustache.

Spanish Platter, 12x12"

I have a new relationship with the East End Gallery in Nantucket this summer.  Business is good and paintings are selling!  This painting is one of a group that I sent out east recently.

Clear Blue Friends, 16x12"

Painting glass is just about the most fun you can have in art, in my opinion.  The balance of transparency along with the blue color of the jars had to be just right, but I tried to keep these jars as simple as possible and not fuss with them too much.

This painting is no longer available. Thank you for your interest in my art!

Telephone Posies, 8x10"

You must be wondering where on earth the telephone is in this painting!  Well, I put telephone in the title because this little still life reminded me of the telephone game we all played when we were kids.  I started with the setup shown below, and painted it in a very restrained, realistic fashion.  Then I used the second painting as a reference for the third painting, but I painted this version in a very impressionistic method.  Interesting to see the evolution from beginning to end, I think.

To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Posies.  Thank you!

I painted the last version as part of a demo for the Barrington Cultural Arts Council yesterday.  We discussed the differences in approach and technique for traditional paintings and impressionistic ones.  We covered everything from new colors in toning the canvas to painting with broken color and losing edges.  Great questions from the participants and a few good laughs made for a very enjoyable afternoon! Thank you BCAC!

Mariana came in to pose for our last portrait class last week.  I'm already looking forward to starting classes again next fall!

Demo at Hoffman Estates

I visited my friends at the Hoffman Estates Art League recently to put on a demo on Impressionist painting techniques.  I took a traditional painting and re-worked it impressionistically.  Here is the result after two hours of intense talking and painting.  We discussed drawing, edges, and broken color, just to name a few things.  This was painted using thick paint and flat brushes, switching to a palette knife at the very end.

And here's a little announcement:  I've posted some favorite paintings as notecards for sale.  If you would be interested, please click here.

Thank you for your interest in my art!

Thanks A Latte, 8x10"

Hi Friends,  Thanks to all of you who have been showing support to me these last several months.  You know who you are-- blog followers, students, teachers, neighbors, friends old and new.  You've taken the time and effort to give me encouragement in some way, and I am so grateful.

Thanks a latte!

"Sunday Afternoon", 14x11" Oil (Palette Knife) on Board.  Sold.

"Sunday Showoff", 6x6" Oil (Palette Knife) on Board.  Sold.

La Playa (Oil Sketch), 8x6" (sold)

The past few weeks at Mainstreet Art Centre have been dedicated to small, quick studies done in 15 minute increments to encourage everyone to put down the most important elements of the painting without any detail or "over thinking". Frankie Johnson has been leading this project, with great success and breakthroughs for everyone! I couldn't resist sneaking in the back of the class to try my hand at a few. (Thank you Frankie!) This is a quick study of a beach scene which I may develop into an actual painting. Thank you for your interest in my art!

Flowers for the Table, 12x12"

Yellow is a difficult color to keep fresh in a painting. Every time another color is added to it, the intensity is weakened quite a bit. To get the flowers to appear fresh, I put on thick paint with a palette knife at the very end of my process. To keep the yellow "bouncing around" in the painting, I mixed it into almost all of the other colors-- including the purple! To bid on this painting, please click on Ann Feldman Flowers for the Table.

Carnaval II, 9x12"

Today was "play day"! I pulled out all the media that I never use anymore: watercolor, gesso, ink, charcoal, and pastel, and started to throw it on various papers and boards. I had five different projects going, and decided to take this one to completion. If I'm still feeling adventurous, I'll develop the others, too.

Teddy Roosevelt

This week's Daily Paintworks challenge was to paint something from a room in the White House. Naturally I couldn't stop myself from attempting to copy Sargent's iconic portrait of Theodore Roosevelt. Since I painted it in "one go", I couldn't slow down and finish it off as I'd like to. But on the other hand, I like the loose, slap-dash quality of my painting sketch. Perhaps once again, it's time to put down the brushes and leave well enough alone.

Lisa

Lisa came in to pose for us in Open Studio last night.  I decided to keep things simple this time around, and painted her monochromatically, using only Burnt Sienna with touches of Burnt Umber for the darkest parts.  The light areas were lifted with a bit of Gamsol on paper towel or my brush.  No white was used in the creation of this painting-- the tiny reflections in her eyes were done with the tip of my brush after it was dipped in the Gamsol.

I could take the portrait at this point and add color to it on top of the monochromatic underpainting.  Color could be transparently glazed on top, allowing the underpainting to show through.  Or I could use thick paint on top, using the underpainting as a "roadmap".  I would need to be careful to match my color value (lightness vs darkness) to the values I had already established in the underpainting.

We will be exploring monochromatic painting in our next session of "The Nuts and Bolts of Portraiture" at Mainstreet later this month.  I'm looking forward to exploring this different approach with my students!

Repose, 10x8" (Sold)

I am so lucky to be part of a studio where we have models come in and pose for us.  This model came in a few weeks ago for our portrait class.  I was busy painting from another model that day, but I took a few reference photos and painted her today.  I may decide to put more detail on this one, or I may just leave it loose and impressionistic as it is now.  Do you have an opinion?

This week's challenge on Daily Paintworks is to paint someone in repose.  I think I'll send this one in!

"Carnaval", 8x6"

Hello Friends,

For the last three days, I had the great fortune to take a workshop from Dawn Emerson, a master pastelist and all-around wonderful teacher. I dove head-first into brand new media (pastel, guache, gesso, sumi ink) and new approaches to painting. I'm going to try my best to apply what I've learned in my oil painting. 

My favorite pieces from the workshop were my figures in motion, and I think I'll be exploring this theme some more in the future. The full color piece above was done with pastel over an intense wash of super black sumi ink. 

This black, white and gray piece was started with a wash of black ink, then gray and white pastel and charcoal. For the final step, I took a thin wash of gesso to give the impression of motion.

I hope that you enjoy this new direction for my art. We'll see if I apply it to my work. I'll certainly give it a try!

Vasanti, 12x16"

Hi Friends,
Several people have asked if I could show my painting process when painting from a model. This morning, I painted Vasanti at Mainstreet in a span of about 2 hours, and for once, I remembered to snap a few photos as I went along. I hope that you enjoy seeing how a portrait evolves!

Starting with a greenish-gray tone on my canvas, I use charcoal to make a horizontal mark for the top of the head and the bottom of the chin. I use the width of my hand to determine the size of the head on my canvas. I decided to make this one slightly smaller than life-sized, so the span of my hand will account for the entire head. Life-size would be just the chin to the hairline.

Using a measuring stick, I compare my model's head length to her width. In this case, her width is about 3/4 of her length. I drew vertical lines with my charcoal to show this relationship.

Next, I found the horizontal halfway mark on my box and drew a line through it. I found the halfway mark on my model and realized that the halfway mark went through the space between her eyebrows.

Using the halfway mark as my guide, I sketched in the major shadow shapes on her face.

Switching from charcoal to paint, I started to mass in my darkest values.

Once my darks have been established, I switch to my lighter skin tones.

Using the dark shadow areas as my guide, I can "see" where the dark irises belong.

I add detail to the features,

And swipe the color of her scarf across the canvas using a palette knife. I'm happy with the likeness of the portrait, and I like the bold color of the scarf. I hope that you enjoyed the journey with me!

Alex, 12x16"

Hello Friends: I had about 2 hours with Alex to paint his portrait the other day. Since I know that I'll only have a short time, I know that I won't have a complete, detailed portrait at the end, but I do like to have a few things achieved:

1. Do I have a decent likeness? The only way to get a painting to look like the sitter is to spend a lot of time in the beginning with the underlying drawing. I try to never rush the drawing. Careful, slow observation and measuring are so important. I'd rather have a well-drawn portrait with no color than a badly drawn portrait in beautiful hues.

2. Do I have a good sense of light and shadow? The excitement in a portrait often comes from the lighting on the subject. With Alex, I pushed the lit side of his face to contrast with the shadows under his cap. I also tried to remember that the black of his cap in the light will not be black so the light will show on it.

3. Do I like the painterly quality? At the end of my time with the model, I'll stand back to see if I can lose some edges or add some thick opaque paint to give the painting more interest. I went back into the lit side of his face to lay thick new color on top of what I had already established. I scumbled the paint a bit on his shoulders and added highlights on his nose and cap.

I love painting from the model because it forces me to be decisive and quick. This method of painting is a lot like perfecting a golf swing or playing the piano-- the more you do it, the more automatic it becomes. And the happier you'll feel!

I Swam Upstream for This? 6x6"

This is the latest in my "Sushi Monday" series.

For purchase information, please click on Ann Feldman Sushi.

A Slice of Paradise, 6x6" (Sold)

What can I say?  It's sleeting outside, and I needed to paint a little corner of paradise.  Have you heard of the challenge site The Virtual Paintout? Every month, a new location on Google Earth is chosen, and artists  can look around virtually and find locations to paint!  This one is from Elba Island, off of Tuscany.  And it was a breath of fresh air for me!

White on White, 8x10" (Sold)

WHITE ON WHITE

Recently, I've become very interested in the subject of painting white.  I just completed painting a portrait of three sisters in white dresses, and while I was in the process of painting it, I visited every master painting I could find in Chicago and Boston to see how the Greats handled this very complex subject.

Here are a few things that I found:

     1. Simplify.  Keep white objects and fabrics as simple as possible.  First, find the lit areas and the shadow areas.  Find an average color in the right value and cover the areas boldly.  Step back and decide where the color can be tweaked a bit, and indicate a few details without stepping outside your values.

Cecilia Beaux

     2. Look for color in both the lit and shadow areas for vibrancy.  I've never seen anyone able to show warmth and sunlight on white fabric like Sorolla, but his whites are far from white!  Pink, blue, and yellow dance all around, without a single stroke of pure white to be found.  And yet, those fabrics are white!

Joaquin Sorolla

     3. Balance warmth and coolness in the shadows.  Sargent's shadows make me want to weep, they are so beautiful.  When I saw his portraits in person, I could see that each shadow has both a warm and cool tone in each one, giving them life and interest.

John Singer Sargent

The most important lesson that I learned on this journey is that in order to paint white, the artist has to slow way down and observe the subject closely.  In fact, white has taught me to become patient, and to let the subject dictate the right path to follow in painting it.  Many rules and preconceived notions about painting have to be put to the side, and silent study is put in their place.  Sometimes, all this patience and study reward us with a new level of achievement, and we can say that it was all worth it.