Origami II

 

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This abstract study has grown on me.   I did a similar one back in 2017.

Soul Sistahs

 

acrylic on canvas, 30" x 40"

This is actually two paintings on canvas, 30" x 20" each, but I put them together here as a kind of diptych, to showcase the mirror effect of the stark similarities in manners of expression between Tina Turner and Beyonce.  These two are aligned in the ether, and so I thought I'd put them together here.  

Dana

oil on panel, 12" x 9"

This is the finished second portrait of Dana in Jacob Dhein's portrait workshop.  It was challenging in that the light sources were multiple.  I worked from a photo taken indoors during the day and with ambient light sources coming in on three sides, plus an overhead light.  I tried to evoke a sense of balance with it, but more importantly with this one, I wanted to capture her innate sweetness of nature, and in that regard, I'm happy with how it turned out.  I also tried to incorporate a bit of abstraction but not confident enough with the technique yet to know how far to push it.  That's why I'm taking his class. Remains to be seen what Jacob thinks.   Update 12.5.2023:  Just swapped in the finished portrait after applying a few refinements suggested by Jacob.  

Dana Study

oil on panel, 12" x 9"

I'm taking a portrait painting workshop with Jacob Dhein, an amazing figure painter, and this is the first of what will probably be three portraits in all.  It is a portrait of a wonderful ex-neighbor of mine, Dana, who still lives close by, so I may try her again in an interior space.  The reference photo for this was taken outdoors on a sunny day.  Jacob told us not to spend too much time on these, as they are skill-building exercises.  This one took a couple hours and I've got a few more details to add, but it's essentially done.  I'm pretty happy with it. Update 10/12/2023:  I've completed the study, applying Jacob's suggestions from his critique.  I still want to incorporate abstraction, but I think I'll leave it to the next one for that.

Poor Little Rich Girl

 

oil on canvas paper, 12" x 12"

This is a rough portrait study of Edie Sedgwick, Andy Warhol's muse and star in a series of short films he produced and directed, one of which was titled, "Poor Little Rich Girl."  Edie herself was born into a wealthy ranching family in Santa Barbara, California.  Around the age of 20, she made her way back East and eventually to New York City, where she found work as a model and met Andy Warhol.  Sadly, she suffered from mental health problems, and died at the age of 32 of a drug overdose.