studio 30

Last week at Studio 30, I was the model!  The inspiration was the paintings of Mary Cassatt, so I wore my hair up and dressed in a long sleeved blouse, long skirt and shawl.  Diane Marks-Bestor did a great job as usual with the setting and pose, and kindly sent me a photo afterwards so I could do my own portrait.  It was an interesting experience to watch other artists for a change, and to see myself expressed in their different versions.  It was also a challenge to paint myself as if it were the 19th century.  It's sort of me, sort of Mary Cassatt as I imagine she would have painted me.

Studio 30

Studio 30, Friday February 13, was an extra long model session day with one pose for about 6 hours, except for short breaks and a potluck lunch.  Fabulous!  Thanks to Kat Sowa for her generous use of the studio at Cathedral Park Place, to all who made this happen and to the other artists who are so inspiring!  I did 3 paintings mostly alla prima.

Ru, our Asian blend young model, wore a Chinese embroidered dress.  In this first painting, 12" x 16", I included twisted twigs, and at first, a large paper lantern.  But later I found the placement and shape of the lantern distracting, and painted it out when I got back to my studio, leaving the paper texture.

The second painting was a portrait of Ru with a simple background, 9" x 12".

Third painting with a green background, 11" x 14", another large lantern was edited out back in the studio. The green adds a meditative quality, to me, as if she is waiting for something.  Spring?

Hydrangeas

Friday, April 13 was my birthday so I celebrated by joining the figure painting session at Cathedral Park Place. There was a lovely model, Neisje, wearing a fur collared jacket, surrounded by still life arrangements in a light filled studio. I chose to paint her with a cobalt blue vase filled with realistic looking hydrangeas and some other flowers. It was fun to alter the arrangement of objects in the room. Later I made some adjustments to colors. To see the other paintings and artists, click on: http://www.facebook.com/l/tAQGSo_CE/allaprimaportland.blogspot.com/2012/04/fine-art-friday-at-kat-sowas-studio-30.html

Thanks to Celeste Bergin for the photos!