From the Artist: I did some oil painting, mostly landscape, years ago. Last year I picked up my brushes again, but decided I wanted to try my hand at something other than landscapes. So I have been doing some sketching of figures and portraits. My daughter gave me the pastels for Christmas and this is the first thing I've done with them.
From the Painting Guide: I've heard it said that a figure is like a landscape, with contours, shadows, etc., just on a smaller scale. While I can see the logic, I've never been entirely convinced by this, not least because with a landscape you can always move a tree out of the scene or put one in... bit harder to do with facial features!
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Skin Tones: I think there are some fabulous skin tones here, built up with layers of pastel. Look at how the pastel is applied, at how line is used in some places very strongly as a line or edge and in other places it's hatched to create areas of color.
Dark Tones: Looking at how the tones on the left-hand side of the face are darker, I think the left-hand side of the hair needs to be darker in tone too. (The greens will work beautifully here, being the complementary to the reds.) I also wonder about the very light area in the left-hand lens of the glasses; it seems too light given the background.
Sketch Lines: It's very much a matter of personal preference whether you leave your initial sketch or working lines to show in the final painting or whether you eliminate them. In this particular instance, I find the dark line behind the hair distracting.
From the Painting Guide: I've heard it said that a figure is like a landscape, with contours, shadows, etc., just on a smaller scale. While I can see the logic, I've never been entirely convinced by this, not least because with a landscape you can always move a tree out of the scene or put one in... bit harder to do with facial features!
Things to Consider When Looking at This Painting:
Skin Tones: I think there are some fabulous skin tones here, built up with layers of pastel. Look at how the pastel is applied, at how line is used in some places very strongly as a line or edge and in other places it's hatched to create areas of color.
Dark Tones: Looking at how the tones on the left-hand side of the face are darker, I think the left-hand side of the hair needs to be darker in tone too. (The greens will work beautifully here, being the complementary to the reds.) I also wonder about the very light area in the left-hand lens of the glasses; it seems too light given the background.
Sketch Lines: It's very much a matter of personal preference whether you leave your initial sketch or working lines to show in the final painting or whether you eliminate them. In this particular instance, I find the dark line behind the hair distracting.