Assignment 4

In class Monday, we took photos of each other with intense color fabric and lighting. The object of this was to create reference for a portrait with an intense color and value range. The assignment for this week is to create a portrait based on the photos you took in class. The process is as follows:
1. create a canvas with a midtone background.
2. begin painting with a warm dark brown similar to burnt umber. Block in shadow areas and begin to create shadow shapes for eyes nose mouth etc....don't focus on detail, keep it loose and only focusing on areas of shadow. This is your value under painting. You can get as dark as black in the darkest areas if you need to.
3. Begin painting in the lighter midtone color areas moving lighter as you get closer to the highlights.

4. bring in the reflective colors you can see in the photos. pay close attention to the intensity of color, don't be afraid use very saturated colors!

Look closely for variations of warm and cool color, note where edges are sharp and edges are smooth. Also pay close attention to warm colors vs cool colors. Which push back and which colors bring the subject closer.

I'm attaching some of the reference I took here as well as some inspiration for process. IF you were not in class, choose from the student photos below to paint( not the paintings)

Inspirational photos:

Class Photos

Assignment #2

Here are the images for you to work on reproducing digitally. these are all natural media paintings and should give you a challenge to not only replicate the design and structure of the images, but also the look and feel  of the material. We will have two weeks to work on these, so bring these in next week to class to work on.  Choose one that appeals to your sensibilities. I purposely chose these for the sensitivity to texture and paint and strong design on display as opposed to a "flat" look. Pay close attention to how the artist created texture using the paint, created brushstrokes and what material they used. Also watch how they make their marks, if the marks accent the volumes of the piece or flatten out an area. Lastly, pay attention to the contrasts and edges. Soft edges, hard edges and "lost edges."

Gary Kelley

Ian McQue

Gregory Manchess

NC Wyeth

NC Wyeth

James Jean

Dean Cornwell

Sam Weber

Donato