New Project

I finished up some picky picky details on the Different Strokes cupcakes watercolor today, and then started a project that has been percolating in my mind for a year. Last year we took a day trip to Old World Wisconsin in Eagle. It was a beautiful day, as many of these early September days are in this neck of the woods, and I took lots of reference photos of buildings and animals, but my favorite was of this hatted and bespectacled man with a broad smile and waxed mustaches.

http://oldworldwisconsin.wisconsinhistory.org/

So I launched into it, even though there are unfinished drawings sitting on the table in my studio. So far I have managed to enlarge the portrait and make a line drawing on newsprint, and then get it transferred to a half a sheet of 150 lb. Arches paper. Now I'm building up the layers on his face. The frisket is still in place, though it will come off tonight. I haven't made any decisions about the background yet. I think, oddly enough, that his fringed scarf will be the hardest to do. I worry about the likeness, but since he isn't a close friend or relative, I guess I can make him look however I want. This portrait is turning out to be less stressful than my self portrait. Besides issues of likeness, I think it's because this one is twice as large. My painting teachers have always said larger is easier, and I'm coming to agree.

Silly me, I always show my husband works in progress. Usually this isn't a great idea, but when he saw my Old World guy he recognized him right away. His response was much more positive than his response to the cupcakes was; he seems to like realistic landscapes and portraits, but not paintings of food.

Oh well.