Frankenfinger No More!

A month and a half after my bizarre injury - following two surgeries, two casts, and a whole lot of prayer - I am finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel! Today the doctor took out two of the pins that were holding everything together; there is still one going through the two bones, making it impossible for me to bend that last joint on the finger. And I will be wearing a splint still for at least the next three weeks. Don't look at these pictures if you are easily grossed out... but if you're curious, here it is, before the two side pins were removed.

The GREAT news is that I am now back to painting comfortably... in fact, yesterday I finished a painting I had been working on off and on at the Society of Figurative Arts - a fun and unusual pose with a nude model. Granted, it took a lot longer than usual, but I don't think my work has suffered from the time off. :-) If anything, I'm stronger and more determined than ever.

"Bone Necklace" - 18x14" - oil on linen panel

Additionally, taking time off from painting was good for me in that I was able to give 100% to some of my volunteer activities, particularly, my job as Texas ambassador for the Portrait Society of America. Last Saturday (May 5), with the help of SoFA's Michael Mentler, I was able to host a get-together and demo for Texas portrait painters, featuring the wonderful Kay Polk as our demo artist. We had a great turnout and the event was very well received. Given that event planning is not my forte, I thought it went very well. Here is a panoramic photo from during the demo, and a group shot, from the event.

I am back to painting and working up a storm - keeping busy with portrait commissions, but also planning a brand new large-scale figurative piece. I'm very excited about it... but you'll have to wait a few more weeks before I reveal it to you. :-)

Notes from the Portrait Society of America, Continued

If you've ever met Bart Lindstrom or heard him speak, you'll probably agree with me in saying he's one of the funniest portrait artists in the business. There's nothing better than having a sense of humor about this profession, especially when times get hard. While Bart is great for a laugh, I have to say that he is an amazing professional who takes his work very seriously.

Here he is at the Face-Off demo from Thursday night:

And the finished painting:

On Friday afternoon, I had the privilege of hearing Bart's talk about "Creating Timeless Compositions." Here are some of my notes from this lecture:

- Composition is the foundation of your painting. We get impatient sometimes and just want to start throwing on paint. Just as it’s smart to carefully think through your plans when designing a house, so you should carefully compose your painting.

- A good composition is open to debate, but here are some general guidelines:

(1) Dividing the canvas in thirds and making one of the connection points your focal point location.

(2) Never put an important element at these points (see below).

- Pay attention! Orchestrate the composition.

- USE THUMBNAIL SKETCHES. Do lots, and make them small (postage stamp size). You should only see the lights and darks.

- ABSTRACT VALUE PATTERNS are what the image would look like if you broke it down into its most basic shapes and values. For example, Sargent's painting of the Windham Sisters, has an abstract value pattern of almost two squarish shapes: a dark square on top of a light square.

- Next step from the thumbnail sketch is a color study, no bigger than 4x6.

- When you put down a brush stroke, it must be right in 5 ways: it must be the right shape, be in the right place, be the right color, the right value, and have the right edges. What are we doing here? We are trying to see the end painting at the beginning. Always ask, “What is the abstract value pattern?

- The color study should be FAST. Use three primaries and three secondaries. 10-15 minutes. If you’re fast and relying on intuition, you’ll be using the right side of your brain and not being too picky / analytical.

- When it’s raw canvas, you’re painting, when it’s paint on paint, you’re blending.

- To determine a correct value, mix your color-value, brush some of it on a 3x5 card and hold it up to our subject and make sure it’s just right.

- Orchestrate your composition with value and then color. The goal is to get something you are excited about.

- Paint from a well of knowledge and decisions you’ve already made.

- Get busy and have more fun!

- Don’t take shortcuts. Put your painting at the very top of your priority list.

- Look at the abstract value patterns of other great artists – it’s okay to borrow these.

- Lack of attention / focus causes you to lose your best brushstrokes... those little gems that you may never get back if you're not careful to preserve them!

- Make a vision book of paintings you want to do. Paint like Roger Federer hits the tennis ball – with all his might and with the greatest of accuracy.