2nd Installment
Here's Shawnrey after some more work. The blue cloth has been changed, to put it in better perspective. The sofa has been repainted a more uniform red. Everything, including Shawnrey herself, is sharper and more defined. I hope this is an improvement!

1st Installment

Our space keeps changing--like the sofa now has a striped cushion. We tried a new

"pick a number" system for staking out our painting positions; it worked pretty well. I ended up setting up over by the door, which was a first for me.

I enjoyed painting Shawnrey. Her brilliant green dress contrasted nicely with the sofa fabric, and her hair had a great texture. I was pretty much out of black paint so I pulled that old trick of mixing prussian blue and alizarine crimson to make a very dark purple, which I used for Shawnrey's hair and the black parts of her dress.

David on the Red Sofa

David was quite cooperative considering that the pose made his hand go to sleep. I liked his expression and the hat he brought along. But I was entranced by the pelt on which he was sitting, which I left for last. This pelt, together with the sofa, makes for an interesting pattern on the rectangular space of the canvas. I think this painting ended up attracting me because of the primary color harmony. My palette was pretty simple too: titanium white, alizarin crimson, lemon and cadmium yellow, and ultramarine blue. Rebeca

David at the Firehouse

The changes at the Firehouse are good for painting. The sense of space is more interesting and the room has more light. We were all excited about having the model on the couch. I need a better camera now. I am not doing that well capturing paintings that have more texture. It is an 18 by 24 acrylic. Karen

David

Our space at the Firehouse has been
reorganized lately, giving us lots more
room. In addition, a nice red loveseat
has materialized, provding a welcome
break from the rattan chair.

This painting needs more work. It
seems to need more yellow, somehow.

Lorraine's Portrait

I seldom do portraits in this setting because I like the entire environment, it's very lively! But I had already painted Lorraine in it the previous week, and I had also decided to use oils instead of acrylics. My camera did not register the pale green background or the many yellows on her face. I tried to correct this with photoshop but I am not very knowledgeable. She had great hair color, I think you will be able to tell how much I liked it. Rebeca

Lorraine

Lorraine was fun to paint--especially her
hair and scarf! To fill up the background,
I painted our familiar pink rug, which was actually
underneath Lorraine's chair. This painting
isn't done yet--in fact, I haven't touched it
since the session ended yesterday. More work
is needed on the face, the hands, the background--
just about everywhere!

Lorraine On a Rainy Day

Lorraine was a delightful model. Few painters came, and those who came loved to talk, so we had fun discussing several subjects with Lorraine. As it turned out, at the time when I was painting her face she was rehearsing some lines in her mind (she is an actress). As a result, what came out on the canvas is the expression she had on during the brief moments she was thinking about her lines. All of this to say she is an upbeat, well-adjusted person, but for a few moments she couldn't help but reflect the emotions of those lines. In retrospect the sweater and scarf needed to have more contrast and the rug needs some atention, but overall I am happy to be painting again in acrylic after a two-week hiatus. Rebeca