GIRL WITH CELL PHONE
The Girl with cellphone comes initially from a sketch from life in the Habit Cafe. The first painting attempt is with oils on panel with black gesso. This is after 3 and a half hours of work, so it is mostly just a sketch and is now put on hold while I consider where to go with it. I like the painterly effect and the strong contrasts, but there are serious glare and mud issues and the painting itself is very thin, being mostly gesso still showing.
I then undertook to try a mid-tone gesso on a slightly larger panel and I would try the same figure again (less squat). Instantly I find myself happier, in that I could draw the figure in burnt umber. I did want to try to keep the same level of darks so I am going to make another pass at low lights on this. So, at it stands now, after 2.5 hours (plus an hour for gessoing), it is roughly sketched in. Unlike canvas, I found that on panel I could entirely erase my work with a swipe of turpentine and then quickly fix it.
This next series is all done in less than an hour's work. I'm trying to follow the steps in my 'How to Paint like Rembrandt' book, so I'm doing things I never would have thought to do on my own. Live and learn, eh? Maybe I'm supposed to be using more impasto paint rather than the glazing I am doing.
Another hour and a half and I am modelling flesh with white/ochre and umber
large version of same:
