Markowsky + Studio Notes

Figure Painting workshop

2012-01-30T11:50:00.000-08:00

Friday Morning Demo

2nd painting

This weekend I taught the annual Figure painting workshop which was held at Tracy Concha's house/studio. We had a great group of seven participants who really worked hard and made great strides with massing value shapes. A three day standing pose was the subject and so there was much discussion on basic drawing issues and topics such as contrapposto. I was very fortunate this time to have my friend and colleague Ben Ward participate and co-teach. Ben knocked out a couple of beautiful studies and set a great example of the importance to accurate drawing and seeing the values shapes. Thanks to Judy Mooney for organizing, Tracy for hosting and all the participants for making this a success.

Steve Willis with a big brush

Ben Ward's paintings

Ben with a clean new palette.

Wes and Mimi massing the big shapes

4 Lanes

2012-01-25T17:26:00.000-08:00

I have four paintings up for auction this year at the Telfair Ball silent auction on February 23rd. The exhibition, featuring many local artists is a fundraiser for the Museum and is titled "Illume". These paintings were done in the fall and revisit an old familiar subject matter for me. The image below is of Jones Lane and is the working study for a larger version I am working on now titled 'Sunrise Solution'.

The top painting and the one below are scenes from just in front of my home. A corner I study many times during the day on the corner of Lincoln and Duffy. The top image is in the morning and the lower one is done in the evening.

Always a sucker for a construction scene, this painting below is in the lane behind my studio which is on Taylor. I find much pleasure in the subject matter of the mundane and familiar and am inspired by Frank Auerbach's paintings of mornington crescent, which was the station near his studio. These four paintings will hang at The Jepson Center for two weeks prior to the auction.

Neal

2011-12-15T13:51:00.000-08:00

My friend Neal sat for me a few days back for a couple hours. Neal is an awesome Mr. Fix-It Handy man and is wicked with a wrench and a pair of pliers. I hope to hit this a second time before Christmas but we will have to see about his availability.

Hugh

2011-12-14T05:36:00.000-08:00

Every year at this time I do a small oil portrait of my son Hugh. Traditionally, in the past, I have set up a laptop with a movie on it for him to watch to keep him 'still'. That has usually turned out to give a rather somber look to the painting. This year he sat for me twice for a total period of about 5 hours and was amazing at sitting still and we even worked a smile into the equation. This has been a big year for him. He is 12, and at the cusp of being a teenager. He will be 13 in January.

Kara

2011-12-13T03:18:00.000-08:00

In preparation for the workshop I did a study of Kara at Tracy Concha's studio to get a feel for the light and how to best utilize the space. It was an interesting experience because I was the only painter as my friends Paula and Judy were sculpting. The sound of the wheels on the floor as they moved their stands around the model added to the groovy blues music on a beautiful spring-like morning in Savannah.

Copy

2011-12-12T16:20:00.000-08:00

In an effort to streamline my teaching methods for the painting workshop in January, I recently did a copy of a Robert Liberace painting. I did this while watching his Figure Sketch in Oil video and found it completely helpful. The benefits of copying from a video is that you can stop the video on still frames and analyze the process, color choices, values, etc. The intention is not really to make it look exactly like his painting, but instead to understand the stages to his process. I documented this painting in 10 stages using a digital camera and will be sharing them and my discoveries at the workshop in January.

Amanda

2011-11-06T14:35:00.000-08:00

Ronnie

2011-10-29T15:49:00.000-07:00

Sarah

2011-10-20T13:12:00.000-07:00

Oddly enough this was a two day pose that turned into a 20 minute sketch. Unhappy with where this was headed in the last 20 minutes I wiped the face clean and then laid in some simple strokes. In the process, I lost some of the likeness and the intensity of the light dropped significantly, but what I gained was a sense of immediacy that I would like to be able to get more in my work. I strive more towards 'letting go' of the contour and the freedom to lose edges. I do like the muted quality to the light and that sense of nocturnal soup that Whistler did so magnificently.

Liberty Lane

2011-10-07T10:12:00.000-07:00

My painting "Liberty Lane" will be exhibited and up for auction this year at the Historic Foundation's 20th Gala event on October 22nd in Savannah's Warren Square. The event is titled 20 by 20. This is a silent art auction for Historic Savannah Foundation members and Gala attendees, featuring 20 Savannah artists' interpretations of 20 significant historic buildings and structures. My view is the scene down the lane looking west directly across from the Cathedral on Abercorn at Liberty. I have been painting the Savannah Lanes over the past decade and a half and really see these 'spaces between' our historic architecture as an overlooked and truly significant part of Savannah's unique beauty and architectural layout.

James

2011-10-02T15:58:00.000-07:00

Got the oil paint out today at the SPS and had a fun three hours painting our old friend James.

Upcoming Figure Painting Workshop!

2011-09-30T08:33:00.000-07:00

Brittany

2011-09-26T11:04:00.000-07:00

The Savannah Portrait Society had it's first full member gathering as nine of us met on a beautiful rainy afternoon at the Jepson center to paint a remarkable new model, Brittany, whom Sandra Colquith discovered. It was Brittany's first time ever modeling and she held a pose better than the pros. We were sad to see one of our members, Isaac Kim spend his last session with us, as he has accepted a job in Florida and will be moving this week. We will miss Isaac but wish him all the best in his new adventures.
I did another black, white, umber and sanguine drawing. I made an effort to 'keep it simple' and allow the drawing to be a drawing. I challenged one of our members, Ben Ward, to bring the paints in next week, so I may have to do the same.

Sandoors

2011-09-19T16:21:00.000-07:00

Today our model was Sandoors. Sandoors was a great model and is a very interesting fellow. He is a drummer/videographer/film maker and Dj from Hungary. Find out more about his work here http://www.soundclick.com/bands/default.cfm?bandID=250895 or by searching DJsandoors on YouTube.
My drawing ended up being a trois crayon, using black, white, umber and sanguine. It started in just black and white and since I was working into a rather warmish toned paper, I decided to add the sanguine about half way through. The technique is one that I learned about this summer at a workshop with Robert Liberace. Peter Paul Rubens did some amazing drawings using this technique as did the french artist Antoine Watteau. Studying their drawings, one thing I have been unable to capture is the efficiency and directness in which they are able to apply and utilize the colors. The drawing at left and right are two studies that I did at the Liberace workshop in July.

The idea is that the sanguine becomes the warmth of the flesh, the umber and black take on the cooler aspect and it is essentially a shorthand way of working with color in the flesh. The white heightens the form working as highlights. Here is an incredible Watteau drawing showing that efficient and directness I speak of. It is challenging for me to allow a drawing to be a drawing. By that, I mean that sometimes I tend to overwork it and try to get the sense of illumination that a painting has, yet a drawing is not necessarily meant for that. In particular when I do a portrait.

Cat

2011-09-11T14:43:00.000-07:00

Sarah

2011-09-04T14:55:00.000-07:00

The Savannah Portrait Society has gathered again and our first session was today. We have been very fortunate to become affiliated with the Jepson Museum and are very happy with our new space. How awesome is it to be able to walk outside the studio and view an amazing Charles Hawthorne 'portrait of a boy' as inspiration. Our model today was Sarah Ryder who we have painted before. She was fantastic and held a great three hour pose. This was charcoal on Ingres Hammermuhle paper. Drawing was a good way to ease into the portrait again for me. I think I will make a commitment to drawing for this month and then pull out the paints.

In the River

2011-09-01T14:38:00.000-07:00

I spent a lot of time painting in the river. Not near it, not around it, but IN it. Standing in it. There is something very meditative and soothing about the current and the pressure of the water on the legs. Water is hard to paint. You can't paint everything. You have to simplify and suggest. The river bottom was this incredible copper color that seemed too warm to paint. In the end, looking at them now, I am resisting painting more blue (sky reflection-smile-) into them. I always do a quick sketch thumbnail in my sketchbook before I begin a painting. My Pelican flow/dip pen works great. Glenn Vilppu turned me on to these. It's fast and then using a self holding water brush I can mass some simple areas to get a quick overview of my intention. You can see the thumbnail below right and the painting at left. Another thing I am prone to is cropping in the studio, after the painting is done.

A testimony

2011-08-28T12:56:00.000-07:00

Something about scouting a painting location, sketching and waiting with anticipation to paint reminds me of scouting ducks with my Dad. That was my favorite part of hunting, the few times I went, looking out from the large station wagon window studying the landscape, observing the light. The time spent with my father was precious, especially doing something other than work. Fishing has a similar recognition. Waking early at 5 or 6 am and going out to paint touches my very core of being alive. That exuberance of being a kid where ‘everything and anything is possible’ ignites within me. It’s that feeling of ‘nothing else matters’. I get that vision of grandeur where I imagine the magnificent painting I will create. Of course, nature steps in and there are moments of humility as well as sublime surprises that only a painter can understand. During the two weeks I spent camping in my tent at Pisgah Forest this August, I made 12 small oil studies that I kept. It has been years since I have focused on en plain air like this. 16 years, to be exact. I have missed it. I have also recognized how much I don’t know and how much I need to learn. I still have trouble with greens and make them to intense or arsenic. I still don’t look hard enough at the sky to see past the ‘default blue’ that I tend to imagine the sky is all the time. During this 2 weeks, however, I did learn to appreciate my ‘mark’ as at times it gels nicely with the sfumato of the smokies as it engulfs a tree, giving it that gestural feeling of a human body in my mind. I have posted a few of the paintings here that I feel happy with, that pleased me in the making and in the results. My trip reinforced that I truly love painting from life and spending time in nature. My longing and intention is that every day be like this.

Studio Incamminati

2011-08-08T16:05:00.001-07:00

The 10 days in Philadelphia have come to a close and I am home in Savannah. The experience was incredible and fulfilling in so many ways. Philadelphia is just the right size, not as crowded as New York during rush hour but just as much to see. I went to the Rodin Museum, the Philadelphia museum of art and took in First Friday in Old Town with friends Aaron and Anna. The first three day workshop I took was with Robert Liberace in Trois Crayon, which is drawing the figure in three colored chalks (sanguine, umber and black). Robert did a couple of great demos and I came out with three or four drawings. He taught us how to treat paper in order to get a more sensitive surface for the materials.

The 5 day workshop with Stephen Early and Darren Kingsley was very informative and watching them demo was really helpful. We did a full day of gestures and closed grisaille and then for the last four days did a morning painting in black and white and then limited palette in the afternoon of a different pose. As usual the week went fast and it would have been nice to stay longer. Studio Incamminati left a profound impression om me. The students and faculty work on the walls is extremely strong and consistent. There is a heirarchy of thought and system that can be studied and absorbed. I found it incredibly helpful on the painting of the male back that I did. I get stuck with middle stages when painting form and value. Darren was able to verbally articulate what needed to be done. I would have made a mess without that kind of guidance. It's awesome being a student. Speaking of students, a former student from SCAD, Pierce Scantlin was taking the workshop and it was great to see him and catch up. His work has really developed in the past 7 years and it was great to hear of his life experiences catching up over lunch at Reading plaza.
So upon returning I spent an afternoon with Melinda sharing ideas and doing gestures based on the experiences learned over the 10 days. As great as its been to be painting the nude, I am headed to the mountains to immerse myself in the river and hunt for those sketches that I missed last time. The slick rock waterfall will be the first stop.

M

2011-07-06T13:36:00.001-07:00

I spent another few hours today in the studio working on this painting. There is so much to address in terms of edges and details. I often like a drawing or painting more in its early and middle stages. The more I refine something, the more I feel it tends to lose life, but at the same time it gains a sense of illumination that is hard to get in the early stages. I really believe that painting is all about simplifying and the more we do that, the more clear we are in our statement. The challenge is in staying true to that statement. The more I paint the more I tend to see all the extraneous details. The folds on the sheets changed repeatedly for instance, and so keeping them simple and leaving them is imperative but challenging.

En Plein Air

2011-06-27T11:31:00.000-07:00

Melinda, my son Hugh and I spent 10 days tent camping in the Pisgah Forest at the Davidson River Campground which is one of my favorite (nearby) places to visit as a retreat from the HOT days of summer in Savannah. It's always humbling for me to paint 'en plein air'. Nature is overwhelming and making a statement with oil paints standing before her can be intimidating. I learned that even when I don't think i have expectations, I have expectations. On top of tubing the river with my son, swimming, hiking, fishing, general camp stuff like cooking, starting a fire, etc., I was somehow going to create a bunch of paintings. I did manage to sketch and at least gather reference and inspiration for future paintings which is a lot like telling the tale of the "fish you almost caught". Somehow it never tastes the same.

There is one painting of a waterfall that I sketched and we planned to return to the last day to paint but the weather did not cooperate. Melinda got off to a kick ass start making a couple of beautiful paintings, uninhibited. Her quick start and my 'fits and starts' served as another lesson in humility. As usual, I long to return to the mountains and intend on committing to a 2 week painting retreat in August to catch all the ones that 'got away'.

Stephen Bond

2011-06-15T07:34:00.001-07:00

This is the third and final sitting on this portrait of Stephen. I was fortunate to get a few hours in since returning from my hike to finish it off. Stephen was great to sit for me. I am sure that there is more that could be done on this, but sometimes you have to just let it be. If I work any more than this I find myself picking at things. I simplified a lot of this mostly, the background for instance and brought the light up slightly on the face. I really enjoyed painting Stephen and will definitely paint him again.

M

2011-06-04T18:46:00.001-07:00

Started a reclined pose of one of my all time favorite models Thursday morning. Spent 2 hours on it. Will be away from the studio for a week as I am leaving tomorrow for the Appalachian Trail. Hope to get back to this for at least one more session when I return.

Stephen

2011-05-24T09:44:00.001-07:00

Another morning session with Stephen. I may have gotten a little reckless on the brushwork. I had the Russian painter Lev Alexandrovich Russov on my mind and wanted to keep the brushwork bold and direct. Today we took a good 30 minutes for chat time which was great. It's awesome to touch base with someone who has known you for so long if you haven't chatted heart to heart in a while. I had some great insights and moments of clarity about myself speaking and listening to Stephen. Stephen is a great counselor. I am honored to know and share time with him.

back study

2011-05-21T10:03:00.001-07:00

Committed myself to three hours in the studio this morning and it was a pleasant break from the rigors of online grading and the course revision I have been working on all quarter. I am meeting deadlines in the upcoming week and have not been able to get to the studio much. Booking a model in advance is a good way for me to stay committed. My friend Isaac Kim joined me to paint today and it was great to have him there. He is very talented and I hope he can make it more often. June is on the horizon and the Appalachian Trail is on my mind. So looking forward to immersing myself in nature.

Bond, Stephen Bond

2011-05-06T11:00:00.000-07:00

Over a year ago, I ran into my friend Stephen Bond at a square in downtown Savannah. As we sat and chatted about Meher Baba and caught up on life it occurred to me he would be a great subject for a painting. I asked him at the time and he was interested. We tried many times over the year to make it happen but it didn't happen until today. I spent three hours on this and worked larger than usual, about 18 by 24 this time, the head is a little smaller than life size. He is willing to come back for another session. Stephen has a great spirit and his meditation skills came in handy. Looking forward to another session.

Art of the Portrait Annual Conference

2011-05-01T14:07:00.000-07:00

Back from Atlanta and all the sights of the weekend are still sinking in and being absorbed. Friday night at the Face off where about 15 painters set up and did a 2 hour portrait demo, I spent the whole time parked behind Jeremy Lipking whom I had never seen paint and really wanted to see his process. I was amazed at the subtlety of his pallete and the precision and patience with which he worked. He painted this profile and the whole painting emerged from the eye out. It was really gorgeous. I loved how he painted the middle light first and painted wet into that mass. The shadows came later which really was interesting as I had always been taught to anchor your light with the shadows as I saw Tony Ryder do on Saturday. Lipking did another demo Friday evening of the female nude which was also captivating. I took lots of video for my own personal use. Rose Frantzen was another painter that demonstrated and she was a real energetic presence on the stage. Her energy poured into her painting and her sense of humor kept us curiously entertained. She was just coming off a high of a recently published show of 180 paintings of people from her home town of Maquoketa. Amazing 1 fott square oil portraits she did. Then of course we had David Leffel do his thing on "The soul of Edges" and we learned that halftones don't exist. Long story. He painted a self portrait on stage in a colorful bandana. I could'nt help but think he was going to pick up a guitar at any moment and sing a Willy Nelson song, he looked just like him. His painting really took me back to the Frank Mason days.

Michelle sleeping

2011-04-27T10:32:00.001-07:00

Been a while since I have been in the studio. This was yesterday morning's painting. I have been working hard on a revision for an online course as well as getting up to speed with online grading in order to attend the Art of The Portrait annual conference this weekd in Atlanta which I am very excited about and grateful to be able to attend. I get to see painters like David Leffel, Sherrie McGraw, Jeremy Lipking, David Kassan, Tony Pro and Anthony Ryder just to name a few. They will be doing demonstrations and some lectures, etc. It will be my first and I am looking forward to it.

Nikki

2011-04-16T13:59:00.001-07:00

The oil portrait sketch workshop at Tracy Concha's studio home is over and was a pleasant experience for me. Nikki was our model on the second day and I began with an approximate 1 hour small color mixing demo seen here. There were 8 participants in total. At the very least people learned that Pozzuoli is not an Italian dish served with cold Marinara but an earth red semi-transparent deep orange red earth pigment with warm undertones, medium grained with good tinting strength. Much reminiscing over Gregory Crane and Frank Mason painting stories were also shared.

self

2011-04-14T09:07:00.000-07:00

Yesterday's self portrait. I swear I never watched Apocolypse Now before I did this. I was just trying new places in the studio to see what kind of light effects I could find. I found the combination of natural from my window and a daylight spot lamp quite compelling. I was thinking of Steven Assael's paintings when he does this so seductively. In particular this one painting of a guy dressed in a Superman costume. I love that painting. I was still reserved in my use of color though, starting with the traditional umber underdrawing. Next time I will go full on explosive and see what happens. Working on 'letting go', stepping 'outside the box' and trying something new.

Michelle

2011-04-07T10:39:00.001-07:00

Three hour study of Michelle. After painting this I have the craving for color. Seems that the neutral atmosphere of the studio can do that for me. Maybe some en plein air sketches are in order? I think we will set up a reclined figure with some color drapery in the coming poses.

John

2011-04-05T10:26:00.001-07:00

I had the pleasure of having my friend John sit for me for another small 8" by 8" quick sketch. (1.5 hrs) Felt good about the simplicity here as well as the drawing. Tried to keep the paint thin yet generous this time as opposed to the expressive carefree quality of Sundays painting. Pleased in this moment.

Rihab

2011-04-03T15:31:00.001-07:00

Our model today was Rihab. Rihab is a professor in the Art History department at SCAD. What a beautiful person and really wonderful to paint. There are few people that can maintain a smile for the duration of a pose. Rihab did magnificently. Today we did one- 1 hour pose and then one- 2 hour pose. The quick pose is seen below. I always like the 1 hour poses better. Must be the athlete in me that enjoys the challenge of doing it in a short time. Today was our last day at this studio. We will be looking for another place to paint as of today. Our goal is to not disband. Stay tuned.

Chris (back study)

2011-03-25T10:02:00.001-07:00

I have been working on a large multi-figurative drawing in the studio for the past many months and am not sure if it will develop into a painting or not. The drawing is maybe 50% finished. Its about 5' tall by 8' long. In order to convince myself of whether to paint it or not I did this back study with the drawing in mind as it has many backs in the composition. Karen and Sandra joined me in the studio to paint and it was a pleasure having company. They both did really lovely studies.

Christopher

2011-03-24T13:10:00.000-07:00

Christopher stopped by the studio yesterday for a one hour quick sketch study. Always a pleasure painting Christopher. I had some early George Bellows on my mind when I did this.

Ronnie

2011-03-22T16:39:00.000-07:00

I believe there is a difference between a painting and a portrait. Not sure how and when that happens necessarily, but I believe it has something to do with the energy exchanged in the process. My friend Ronnie sat for me today for a solid three hour session. Ronnie is an insightful and honest person. Few people I have met are as open and honest as Ronnie. The conversation meandered from spirituality, relationships, intimacy and recovery with long periods of meditation in between. I feel there is an intensity to Ronnie's gaze that commands attention with a quiet sense of humility and grace. (this was another 8" by 8" oil on linen adhered to panel)

Shabnam

2011-03-20T15:37:00.000-07:00

A three hour oil sketch today of our excellent model Shabnam. This is another small 8" by 8" oil on linen on board. I utilized a full pallette this time, whereas last week I used only black, white, sienna and umber. A three hour sketch has both its perks and drawbacks compared to the 1 hour sketch. Obviously its nice to have a couple extra hours to define and develop but something can tend to get lost, maybe it's the spontaneity.

Karen again

2011-03-14T14:57:00.001-07:00

I was chatting with at least 2 people today about how often we inject our own features on people when we draw them. In yesterday's quick oil sketches I was pleased with the simplicity in which I laid in the paint but in retrospect am unhappy with the drawing. Proportions askew in certain places can haunt us long after the paint has dried. Acceptance is the answer to all my problems today. There is always next time! Here is another drawing I am working on...or...it could be done. Nice thing about charcoal is it never dries.

Karen and Daniel

2011-03-13T15:18:00.001-07:00

Today we were model-less so decided to do 1 hr quick sketches of eachother. Always fun cause the clock is ticking and there is no time to fuss. I sat after they did and held a look of surprise on my face for about 40 minutes....in between laughs and giggles. It was loads of FUN!

The Portrait Sketch Workshop

2011-03-08T11:30:00.000-08:00

This intensive 2 day workshop places emphasis on capturing
a dynamic sense of light on the human head in a bold simple statement.
April 15th and 16th 9am-5pm cost= $185
Contact Judy Mooney to sign up and for details:
email: judymooney@bellsouth.net ph: 912 443 9313

Please email me if you have any specific questions about the workshop. draw2day@gmail.com

Sarah

2011-03-06T14:46:00.000-08:00

Hugh

2011-03-04T13:36:00.001-08:00

Spent a couple hours in the studio this afternoon painting my son Hugh while he watched a movie on my laptop. Jurrasic Park. I was determined to make him smile this time, but the horror of the movie kept him in suspense. Funny how you can't force a mood in a painting. It must come out naturally. It has a life of it's own, as Cezanne said. I struggled considerably with this one, fighting against the white of the panel. Usually I work into a pre-stained grey tone but had not gotten around to toning the panels yet. Lesson learned.

Colleen

2011-02-27T15:34:00.000-08:00

This week's portrait sketch was of Karen's friend Colleen. On the tail of the Liberace workshop, I did my best to keep it bold and simple in my statement of the light.

Studies from Robert Liberace Workshop

2011-02-27T08:09:00.001-08:00

What an amazing couple of days of absorbing information from Robert Liberace while at a workshop in Fort Meyers Fla. Robert is truely a master of his craft and such an enthusiastic, patient and inspiring teacher. He did a portrait demo the first evening which was truly remarkable. The first day we did about three forty minute grisaille sketches. I struggled with the concept of 'keeping it simple' and getting a bold simple statement. Instead, I noodled and got too much detail (sound familiar?) The second day he did a simple yet powerful egg demo explaining some basic characteristics of light and how to utilize them on the head. We then did a 40 minute color sketch. With an intention to keep it broad and simple I came up with the sketch you see here at the top. Much better than the first day. After that we did a three hour study using the smaller study as information. One of the most memorable, fascinating and truly useful aspects of the workshop was when Robert showed slides of some of his favorite paintings and drawings and discussed them in relationship to his teachings. His dialogue with the work was informative, insightful and impassioned. I video taped this on my Blackberry. If there was a downside to the workshop, is was that the person organizing it in Fort Meyers was very unorganized and they overbooked what was supposed to be a 15 person workshop into a 26 person workshop. Space was short and poeple were quite upset. Robert handled the situation with such grace and in the end everyone seemed to get a great deal of feedback and information from the experience.

Evan

2011-02-21T13:38:00.001-08:00

Our model in our portrait group this week was Evan. A three our sketch using black and white charcoal on sand tone paper.

Anne

2011-02-06T17:16:00.000-08:00

Our model this week was a young lady who is a friend of Sandra Colquith's. Her name is Anne and she was great model to paint. I did another small 4" by 6" painting, oil on linen on board. I love the directness with which I am forced to work on these small paintings. You really cannot fuss at this scale.

LuLu

2011-01-30T19:05:00.000-08:00

Here is this week's portrait sketch, actually a two session painting. I lost control at the end of this one and painted out a hand that her chin was resting on as well as repositioned her shoulders different than what I was actually viewing. I lost some likeness in the process but feel I gained some freshness to the mark as well a more unified whole.

Claire

2011-01-17T10:30:00.001-08:00

Claire Ward, Ben's lovely wife sat for us yesterday and was a real pleasure to paint. This was a very small attempt sized 4" by 6" on panel. Proved an interesting exercise in efficiency to strokes. I am still working on softening those edges.

Mary

2011-01-03T13:23:00.000-08:00

This is my friend Sharon's niece, Mary, who sat for us Sunday at our weekly portrait session. I enjoyed painting this one and feel that I am making some progress in the quick time allotted for these oil sketches. I have been using the Daniel Green paLETTE that he describes in his portrait painting video and have found that quite useful as a shorthand ready made way of beginning. I highly suggest it. It's been refreshing to paint for the pure FUN of it.

Nikki

2010-12-31T13:50:00.001-08:00

Burdick copy

2010-12-31T13:42:00.000-08:00

In the search for loosening up and discovering tonal and chromatic shifts, yesterday I copied a Scott Burdick painting in which I really like. The exercise proved very interesting and informative as well as useful for today's studio study of Nikki.

Kayman

2010-12-27T06:41:00.000-08:00

At yesterday's portrait group session my Friend Karen's step sister Kayman was our model. Without the paints in tow I decided to experiment a little with pastels and the results are as seen here. What a great model she was an what a pleasure it has been to draw children. Today I watched a portrait demo in charcoal by Casey Baugh as he draws the infamous Richard Schimd. Casey is very experimental in his metheods and it really took me back to the old Kent Williams days.

My son, Hugh

2010-12-19T16:22:00.001-08:00

A group of us has been meeting every Sunday for the past few weeks doing a three hour portrait sitting of a friend or local model. Today my son Hugh sat while watching a couple movies on the laptop. It was my friend, Karen's idea and seemed to be the perfect solution to not having a model. It has been so inspiring to paint in a group. Something I have really not done since College. The sense of comradery, encouragement and sharing is invaluable. Why haven't we been doing this for years? My son was elated to be handed the 60 bucks, payment for his modeling services at the end of the session. He said he will wait and save it until after Christmas...and use it for that something....maybe Santa happens to forget.

Chris

2010-12-17T17:38:00.000-08:00

Spent the afternoon yesterday painting Chris' back and included some quick sketches we did as warm ups. I am searching for a way to paint the quicksketch poses in a loose yet representational manner. That is a goal I am striving towards. How does Robert Liberace do it?

2010-12-06T05:18:00.001-08:00

My Grandma Kitty was a saint. She was a kind and caring woman who gave to family and friends endlessly, with love. She taught me how to pick Cranberries and to plant a garden. She filleted my fish, even the slimey jackfish, when I was to young and selfish and only cared about catching them. She tucked me in on cold Canadian winter nights under the pierehna (big goose down quilt) and kissed my forehead. She taught me how to say Ukranian swear words. (I dont think that was intentional) and how to sprinkle skerutzky (cool ukeranian pastry) with icing sugar. I longed for the days when I could visit her house and have one of her warm jam-jams from her oven. She taught my mom how to make pierogies who then taught me. Today every Thanksgiving, as a tradition, I make pierogies with my 11 year old son, Hugh, even though he doesn't like them. I love you Grandma Kitty, you will be missed, remembered and always in my heart.

Fall (Magician) in progress

2010-12-01T10:42:00.001-08:00

Knocked in the drapery Wednesday and then the face today. Will spend more time refining and unifying the colors and values.

quick oil sketch

2010-11-23T10:43:00.000-08:00

A small oil sketch done in the studio yesterday. I have the model alternate these two poses and love to keep it simple and quick. The one on the left was about 60 minutes, the one on the right, 40. The canvas is 11 by 14 inches.

Fall (Magician)

2010-11-19T15:28:00.001-08:00

This is the finished drawing. I am currently working on the painting.

Christopher

2010-11-13T12:46:00.001-08:00

I spent another couple hours Friday morning on Christopher's portrait and had a lot of fun drawing his beard. After watching David Kassan's video I was so amazed at how much he layers, wiping off with the brush and then building again, 'knocking back' or 'tapping down' as he says. I tried to take it further than I usually do. Christopher is a riot. Ask him what we conversed about for the 2 hours when you see him.

Bodies sketches

2010-10-30T15:00:00.001-07:00

A couple of sketchbook pages from yesterdays visit to the BODIES exhibit in Atlanta. How great would it be to have one of these cadavers in the studio. Drawing these makes me want to sculpt because I wanted to touch them so badly, get my fingers under the muscles. Call me curious.

Study for Fall (Magician)

2010-10-17T19:21:00.000-07:00

I then came back to the face after the drapery was more fully realized and worked on the light, again with a blanket around me. Here it is getting close to being done, with some refining needed in he eyes and parts of the face.
I drew my face first with the cloak/blanket wrapped and blocked in the drapery loosely. I then set up a skeleton that posed as me and wrapped him in the cloak/blanket. This allowed me to get the drapery just as I wanted it and have it be still. Poor quality jpeg from my smart phone. I kind of like the hazey sense of sfumato.
I had some drawings of Khalil Gibran in the back of my mind as this drawing came out. The idea was to give the impression of me meditating.

Summer Warrior

2010-09-16T15:04:00.001-07:00

Detail of Christopher

2010-08-26T10:23:00.001-07:00

Christopher -Stage 3 (3hrs)

2010-08-26T10:00:00.000-07:00

As far as I got in just under 3 hours. Had a blast. Christopher is a great model. I am going to try and get him to do some portrait work at the College.

Christopher -Stage 2

2010-08-26T09:58:00.001-07:00

Knocked in some of the light and gave some definition to the eyes.

Christopher -Stage 1

2010-08-26T09:55:00.000-07:00

I had a great few hours in the studio this morning with my friend Christopher who really has the most amazing head to draw. I did a quick block-in using the famous Kassan Pan Pastels and tried to keep it loose and spontaneous.

Warrior In progress

2010-08-23T13:35:00.001-07:00

I am beginning to refine the light more in the face. I brought the light up. There were some drawing issues, proportions with the shadow side that I discovered when viewing the reverse image in a mirror. I made the changes and am bearing down on finishing it. I will upload a better quality jpeg when done as this is from my smartphone and the quality is poor.

first skin of paint

2010-08-13T13:58:00.001-07:00

Underpainting

2010-08-12T14:49:00.001-07:00

warrior with mohawk

2010-08-10T13:12:00.001-07:00

This is the Mohawk I never had and regret not having back in art school, when I had an abundance of hair. Chris Armstrong (aka:The Clean Marine) inspired me to do this. I am considering doing it red in the painting. Still not sure.

Back in the studio

2010-08-09T14:58:00.000-07:00

Its been a long vacation from the studio. 21 days on the Appalachian Trail, a case of Giardia and then 14 days in Canada with Hugh and the family. Loved every minute of it (except the giardia). A full day in the studio was just what the doctor ordered. I started a drawing for the Summer Warrior self portrait which is the 3rd of the series. I have been inspired by the drawings and paintings of David Kassan for some while and decided to try his technique of using Pan pastels and charcoal.

Turtle cropping

2010-05-25T11:36:00.000-07:00

The new website is almost ready and will feature this new painting which shows croppings here. Look for it at the end of May. See link above.

Pakiteyimow cropping

2010-05-25T11:26:00.000-07:00

Pakiteyimow is done. Here is a cropping.

2010-05-25T11:22:00.000-07:00

The new website will be up at the end of May with the full large version.

Turtle Teaser in color

2010-04-08T17:13:00.001-07:00

pakiteyimow

2010-01-24T14:43:00.000-08:00

Pakiteyimow translates to 'surrender' in Cree. I am mostly finished with the drawing but after this jpeg was shot I have been adding detail to the turtle shells in the foreground. Can't wait to get started on the painting. Its another large drawing approximately 4 1/2 by 6 feet.

Raven Song Under Two Moons

2010-01-19T18:07:00.001-08:00

I have completed the painting for "Raven Song Under Two Moons".

Turtle Teaser

2010-01-16T12:00:00.001-08:00

I am almost finished this drawing and shot some jpeg's to see what the best way to tweak the value is. The drawing is about 4 by 5 feet approximately. Charcoal on Stonehenge.

Format Changes...

2009-12-31T11:23:00.000-08:00

I have made some changes to the blog. As I have departed from my one-a-day paintings recently, this blog will now become a place to post recent progress, thoughts, trials and tribulations around the studio. I am in the process of having my website redesigned and updated. I am excited about this and look forward to seeing what transpires. A very talented friend and former student, Brandon Lively will be doing it. Most recently I had a drawing chosen for exhibit in a group show in UNC Ashville. It was juried by Deborah Rockman, author of The Art Of Teaching Art. Unfortunately, I had complications having the oversized drawing framed and shipped in order to arrive on time and it will therefor not hang. I was bummed, so the least I can do is post the drawing here. It is titled "Raven song Under Two Moons" and is part of a series I have been developing I call Rites Of Passage.

click here to see show

2009-07-26T14:15:00.000-07:00

My drawing "MIke's Dilemma" (which can be seen on the invite above as the black and white drawing) has been chosen for the show listed below...

In The Flesh Part II July 22 – August 30 Reception: August 13, 6-8pm - Gallery Talk: 7pm  In The Flesh Part II is an exhibition that focuses on contemporary figurative art. This exhibition opportunity attracted close to 300 artists from around the country and world providing the juror with well over 830 images with which to choose for this exhibition. Our juror chose 27 works mostly two-dimensional paintings, drawings, mixed media, and photography but also a couple of three-dimensional works, one of which is a very large installation performance piece. Our juror, Andrea Pollan is the founder and curator of the Curator’s Office in Washington DC. Pollan is a well-respected expert in the art field. She has organized over 135 exhibitions of contemporary art both regionally and nationally and has written numerous catalogs and exhibition brochures. Her business, Curator’s Office was identified in December 2006’s Vanity Fair as an important player in “The Art Universe.”

Big Lane

2009-07-03T13:11:00.000-07:00

2009-07-03T13:08:00.000-07:00

I have decided to post a couple paintings that are not exactly "first strikes". To the contrary, they are paintings that have been in progress for some time. They are of the Urban Landscape subject and it is what I paint when I don't know what else to paint. Over the past few years, I have departed from the urban landscape, instead I have been making efforts to paint and draw the figure in a way that satisfies me in the studio. To date, I have made a few large scale drawings of the figure that I believe in. I am still sorting out the painting part. I will post those at a later date. The painting here is oil on linen, 2 by 2 foot.

Frank Herbert Mason (1921-2009)

2009-06-29T19:34:00.000-07:00

Frank Mason passed away on June 16th, 2009. Frank was a teacher of mine and was introduced to me by another teacher and friend, Gregory Crane. PLease take a moment to view this short film about a great man who touched many of us in a powerful way. http://www.maestrofilms.net//

1 minute gestures

2009-05-20T07:06:00.001-07:00

semiconscious moment of clarity

2009-05-12T01:25:00.001-07:00

2009-05-01T14:16:00.002-07:00

2009-05-01T14:16:00.001-07:00

Fiday Nov. 6th

2009-03-06T18:50:00.001-08:00

Nov2nd

2008-11-02T10:44:00.001-08:00

Nov 1st

2008-11-01T12:27:00.001-07:00

I enjoyed leaving this one as is, because it maintains some of the planar analysis in it. Geez...I am looking more and more like my dad every day. And thats a good thing Bohdie! Time to work on 3/4 views for a while now.

Oct. 29th

2008-10-29T18:19:00.001-07:00

Oct 27th

2008-10-27T19:07:00.001-07:00

I am Vladamir Ovechkinsky, great great great great grandfather to Alex Ovechkin. Russian Olympian pond hockey gold medalist, 1804.

Oct 26th

2008-10-26T18:40:00.000-07:00

There is just something about a fleece toque that really makes me happy.

Oct. 25th

2008-10-25T14:17:00.000-07:00

This is a digital painting done on the drawing tablet using Corel Painter IX. I missed the smell of the oils. Okay so, this has a little klunky kinda Van Goghie kinda thing happening. No editing remember, post 'em all.

Oct. 24th

2008-10-24T20:23:00.000-07:00

Ok-I missed a day. Back at it. Charcoal pencil, my finger, kneaded eraser and a paper towel stomp.

Garlic

2008-09-26T14:34:00.000-07:00

Turnip #2

2008-09-23T15:00:00.000-07:00

Wrinkled Black Radishes

2008-09-18T18:56:00.000-07:00

Empty Oil Bottle with Son's Drawing

2008-09-08T12:00:00.000-07:00

e-mail for price

Red and yellow Onion

2008-09-04T14:51:00.000-07:00

e-mail for price