Beginnings of a Portrait – Scary Looking!

Good Morning!

So much to paint and so little time! That is how I have been feeling since beginning watercolor in 2012. Working full time as a high school music teacher did not leave much time to paint. In the summer I would paint every day. When school started again, it had to wait until the weekends when there were no performances, festivals, or family commitments – in other words, not much painting.

Last summer I focused on flowers using using Anna Mason’s method (http://watercolourswithwow.com/). Her site excellent and economical. Her work is realistic and beautiful, and her teaching method is methodical and makes sense.

Even when there isn’t time to paint, you can still plan ahead, and I always had an interest in trying portraits. About 2 years ago I started to collect photographs of friends – mostly from Facebook posts – that would be great for portraits.
When I found a photograph the first thing I did was to ask permission from the owner to use it as a painting. They always say “yes.”

More of the story to come, but here are two progress photos from yesterday’s painting.

I play trumpet in a brass quintet; this painting is of a fellow trombonist during a performance in Bethlehem, PA. I have been wanting to paint this for a couple years, but needed to practice first. His face is looking a little scary right now because the skin tones aren’t finished. Keep checking back for updates!