"Joey" 16x20 oil on panel

First painting from life/model in 6 months.  It felt great to get back to classes at the Academy and studying with Sharon.  Not great, but an OK effort for the first one back.

"Daydreamer" (Ancrew) 15x30 oil on canvas

The last painting from my year of classes at the Academy studying with Sharon Sprung.  Figurative painting from life/model.  Andrew was a wonderful subject.  I wish a photo could show more detail that is in the painting, but alas. . .  It was a very good year of painting and I feel like I learned a great deal!  Thanks to Sharon, the most amazing teacher.  Now, a summer of painting on my own in VT.  More to follow, hopefully soon.

"Peace" (Jesse) 18x24 oil on linen

This new painting emerged out of a great deal of struggle.  Two and a half weeks ago I started a new pose on an 18x36 gessoed panel.  The drawing and composition were a good start and I proceeded to paint only to feel completely stymied.  The paint seemed to be soaking in and getting chalky.  Not at all like oils on panel usually respond.  I use really good quality oil paints, so materials didn't seem to be the possible problem.  My immediate conclusion: it must be the painter (of course.)  I continued to work really hard, piling on the paint.  The solution to everything is usually "more paint", but by the following Monday when my teacher arrived I was terribly frustrated.  She immediately said "something's wrong", and encouraged me to "move on, get a new start".  I hate to quit, and was beating myself up something awful.  It's easy to get so DOWN (sensitive? moody? fear of failure?)  So easy to fall into negative self-recrimination.

But I'm here to listen and learn from Sharon, so I bucked up and took her advice.

She moved me to the other model in the room, Jesse.  And I found a linen support I had laying around in the locker room.  A fresh start, but with a lot shorter time to work on the painting.  Yikes!  But, Jesse has such character, great muscle definition and skin color, a great look, and I love the peace sign earring.  As it turned out, the whole thing was a pleasure to paint.  And what started as a bomb turned into a success.  And relatively quickly, for me.  Lessons learned: sometimes a fresh start is just the ticket.  And, Sharon's theory is that the gesso (acrylic) I used to prep the panel was the problem.  It probably hadn't properly "cured".  Live and learn. . .

Andrew 12x12 oil on panel

I started a new large painting on Monday, but the model needed to take the day off today, so Andrew substituted and we did a one-day painting.  I would love to spend more time painting him.  He has a great look.  But painting quickly from life is a great exercise.

"Waltrudis in Blues" 18x18 oil on canvas

Another painting from Sharon Sprung's class. I loved the many shades of blues and greens which beautifully offset the model's delicate complexion and hair. Very tricky to capture a more mature model's features without being harsh. Such small differences can make her look too young or too old. I learned a lot, again.

"Private Moment (Amanda)" 18x36 oil on panel

Still on the easel at the Academy, my most recent painting finished in class yesterday. It will go in the class show which will be hung on April 2 and run for two weeks. So, I probably won't have a chance to photograph it until after the show. I was surprised and pleased at how well the composition turned out in this painting since I was one of the last in the class to "pick my spot" and that usually means a disadvantage in the view of the pose. But this was kind of nice, peeking past the backdrop/curtain at this lovely young woman. Amanda is an amazing model and a pleasure to paint. I learned a lot with this painting, too. (Thanks to Sharon, as always!)

"Dressing" (Rachel) 24x24 oil on canvas

A new figurative painting from class, and another that the photo does some weird stuff. I need help! The colors seem to shift inconsistently and things show up that are not even in the painting. Also, so much detail is lost. It looks murky. And I don't have this problem when shooting anything except my paintings. :-( But photography aside, this is a fairly successful painting from life. A beautiful model and an interesting pose. That fabric is tough! I referred to the master, Sorolla, whose fabric is incredible. Mine needs work, but all in all, a pretty good effort, I think. I only wish my blog followers could see it in person.

"Moment of Silence" 24x24 oil on canvas

I loved this pose, the feeling of a moment of silence between two people. Connie and Cesar. Excellent models. This is still unfinished. I need to work more on Connie, and also on the scarf and vest. But I was really pleased with Cesar's face so I wanted to go ahead and post it. I don't know when I'll get back to it, as most of my non-class painting is done in VT. In my class I'm on to another one which I'm liking a lot as well.

"The Dancer" 18x24 oil on canvas

I haven't posted in a while and I have two new images to share, but I'll preface these posts with the comment that I am frustrated with my ability to photograph the images, and I'm not sure what to do about it. I just can't get them to look like they look. So much detail is lost. So much color shift, and so much reflection. OK, I'm done with my rant. This was a studio/class painting and my "spot" was seated just below the model, so I it was a tough place to paint. But the model was amazing and I loved the challenge. The tutu wasn't easy either! So, despite frustrations, I've decided to share.

"The Commuter" (John) 24x36 oil on linen

A new studio painting completed today at the Academy (Sharon Sprung's class.) Sorry about the reflections on the darks. I may try to re-photograph it tomorrow. This is another of the large format paintings - 24x36 - done from life/a model. I seem to have the most success with either very small or very large.

"Honeycrisp" 6x6 oil on canvas

Apple season. My favorite -- Honeycrisp, fresh from the orchard. But that's not why I painted this. Sharon gave me an assignment, "paint fruit". Yes, class at the Academy is back in session. I spent one week, painted a portrait of a beautiful model, Leslie. And promptly forgot to photograph it. (It wasn't as beautiful as the model, unfortunately.)

Now, I'm back in VT for the month of October. Can't pull myself away from Fall in VT. Hence, my assignment. . . but, so appropriate. Apple season. One of those signs of Fall in VT.

"With Hat in Hand" 24 x 36 oil on canvas

Here's my latest from Sharon Sprung's class. A three week pose, but cut short by a few days of absence, both mine and the model's. All in all I was pleased. Sharon says I am moving to a new level, but need to focus on textures as well as giving more depth to the shadows, more contrast. I am really loving working on this larger size -- 24 x36.

"Stephanie - Nude with Pearls" 24x36 oil on canvas

Finally, something new to post! Although the photos aren't so great, I'm really pleased with this new painting. Done in two weeks in Sharon's class. It's big, for me. I really struggled with the skin tone and and natural light this time of year is a challenge. I plan to glaze it later to make it a little warmer, but all in all it was a good experience. The second photo is a detail shot.

"Clif" 12x12 oil on canvas

I have been working on another large painting in my class and am making good progress, however, got to class today and once again the model didn't show. Initially I was really bummed. I wanted to work on the one I had planned on working on. Boo!

Clif, one of our monitors, offered to sit for us. What a great time I had! A very fun, loose little daily painting. Surprises are always the best! As often happens when I photograph at the Academy, the picture doesn't do it justice. But I wanted to share it anyway.

"Rios in Bandanna" 16x20 oil on panel

I'm working on a large painting (24x36) in my class, but the model was out sick on Friday so there was an opportunity to do a "daily painting" from life/the other model in the room. Unfortunately this is a really bad photo, but it was fun to just paint quickly, loosely, on panel with no pressure or expectations. I think that's the magic of daily paintings. This one is a little bigger than usual, but 16x20 was the only panel I had in my locker. It was a fun day. Sorry the picture is so bad...

"Rios, Boxer" 30x30 oil on canvas

Here is the painting I did in Sharon's class in December. Unfortunately, holidays intervened and I was unable to post until today. I have sorely neglected my blog and totally understand if no one is checking in. I do plan to post as often as possible, and in fact will have some drawings from my drawing class in the next few days. I'm learning so much in my classes. Really enjoying working larger. This one is 30x30, and I'm currently working on one that is 24x36. The work in the classes is very different than the daily painting I was doing when I created the blog, and doesn't lend itself to frequent postings. So, please bear with me. Daily painting will return in the summer, I hope. For now, I will post when these larger paintings are completed, and look forward to comments and input.

"Catherine, Turquoise Teddy" 24x36 oil on canvas

Working larger than I've ever attempted and having a lot of fun with it. I have two more sessions to finish, and a few things that need to be changed. Unfortunately, I used a lousy canvas so the texture isn't good. Live and learn. But I feel like I'm making progress again after my hiatus, and I'm really enjoying my classes.

My second class is a drawing class, which is really fantastic. Great teacher, Gabriella Dellosso. But not a lot to show from the class. Lots of exercises, lots of learning. Just what I wanted.

Connie & Pigeon (18 x 24 oil on canvas)

I know, weeks go by and I post nothing, then two in one day. Inconsistent. But it's the end of two weeks of class, so here's what I've been working on. Unfortunately, bad photo. Color is off, as well as some glare. But I was so happy to get back to painting. And in spite of some drawing accuracy issues, I was pleased with my progress on this as a re-entry painting. I'm ready to work hard and make progress, and I'll post occasionally as paintings and drawings warrant.

A Brief Hiatus

Sometimes life intervenes. I will be going to VT for the rest of this week so John Henry and Marie will go unfinished. No great loss. I am not happy with my work in either of the classes. Having a bit of a crisis of confidence in my figure painting abilities. I knew I would struggle after the summer off, after spending time painting from photos not life. Suffice it to say, I am struggling. I have taken the unsuccessful attempts down from the blog. I'm also re-thinking how I deal with the blog. Not sure I can handle posting all the work in process. TBD. . .

Hopefully a little time off to attend to a few things will put me in a better frame of mind. For now, I am going to post two of my best from last year to encourage myself to keep going. I'll be back as soon as possible!

Keep painting, friends. I'll be watching you for inspiration and encouragement. Don't hesitate to get in touch by email or by Facebook. "Friend" me if you FB! Take care. . .

"Pigeon" 18x18 oil on canvas

I haven't had much time to paint and consequently no postings. Today I am working on my re-stretching project. Two of my figurative pieces from last years class with Sharon Sprung seemed to lend themselves to "cropping" when I photographed them. So, here is the 2nd one, being re-stretched from 18x24 to 18x18. This model, whose name was Pigeon (my apologies if I'm spelling it wrong) was so incredibly beautiful. And a sweet personality to match. So I think she will make it to a wall somewhere. The other one is on a previous post on the blog.

Oh, worth noting: my museum visits have been incredibly inspiring. Especially this week when I re-visited the Matisse exhibit at MOMA and then drove up to Williamstown, MA to the Clark to see the Degas/Picasso show. There were a few pieces of both Degas and Picasso that I had never seen. "Woman Ironing" by each artist were so moving, so expressive, so absolutely wonderful that I kept returning over and over. The Picasso one is angular and textured and very, very sad. The Degas is luminous and beautiful. Nothing beats seeing them in person. Reproductions just can't capture the colors, textures and vibrancy of oils. I was so inspired! Can't wait to get back to figure painting in September!

For now, the busy-ness of August continues. . .