Only a good likeness is not everything

Only a good likeness is not everything

As you know by now, painting commissioned portraits is an essential part of my daily artistic activity and has been for more than twenty-five years. I like to talk about it over and over again and hope that you can benefit from this.

Let me repeat this week what I consider to be the most important properties for a portrait painter.

Only a good likeness is not everything

  • Good drawing skills and a thorough mastery of painting technique, above all.
  • Good sense of composition.
  • Good sense of colour.
  • Good communication skills.

Continue reading “Only a good likeness is not everything”

Portrait painting from life, underpainting

Portrait painting from life, underpainting

In this short portrait portrait painting from life, underpainting, demonstration video I only use raw umber.

If you have the opportunity to paint from observation you should do so as much as possible.

To begin with, I give the entire canvas a very thin wash of raw umber with standard painting medium.

Then, using a flat synthetic brush I put down the first contours. I determine where the eyes, nose and mouth are.

Continue reading “Portrait painting from life, underpainting”

Detailed or blurry

Detailed or blurry

Detailed or blurry
Portrait painting from photography has pros and cons. One of the major drawbacks is the inclination to copy all the details. Detailed or blurry?Apparently every wrinkle, eyelash and hair lock must be displayed faithfully. But a good portrait is not a sum of all observable details. I have said it last week: It’s not about whether it just seems real, the point is that it is true and authentic.

In his book Alla Prima ll Richard Schmid says:” In my view, detail for its own sake is a shallow goal, because I don´t think art is about how much stuff I can depict” Continue reading “Detailed or blurry”

Painting a portrait from life

Painting a portrait from life

Life model

Painting a portrait from life? Do you work a lot from photography? There is nothing wrong with that, I have said so often. It gives you the opportunity to calmly create a portrait with good likeness and time to mix the colours at ease. It is also often a fantastic picture that invites you to make a beautiful painting.

But there are also pitfalls, namely that you create a  too detailed  reproduction of the photo. That is a missed opportunity. A painting must be your interpretation and not a copied image. Continue reading “Painting a portrait from life”

Painting hands in oil paint

 

About painting hands in oil paint.

Let me start with a quote of the famous Art teacher Robert Henri form his book The Art Spirit:

“Better paint the gesture of the hand than the hand”.

I love to paint hands and this fantastic phrase animates me once again to show the expression of the hand.

 

painting hands in oil paint

Painting hands in oil paint. Many people think that a painted portrait is just only about the face. Of course it is more than that. Hands can belong just as well to the whole image. Hereto the hands of a commission that I have on my easel now. When the portrait is delivered, and I have the permission of the client, I’ll show you the whole painting. Continue reading “Painting hands in oil paint”

Cool-warm contrast in portrait painting

Cool-warm contrast in portrait painting

Cool warm contrast portrait painting.

In portrait painting you have to deal with a number of contrasts. One is the cool-warm contrast. And I know from experience that people often struggle with this topic. The light-dark contrast is no problem to many students.

Cool-warm contrast in portrait paintingA basic principle is the often applicable rule: