I’ve been teaching an expressive portraits class on Friday nights. In the first few classes we talked about common pitfalls including the blueberry pancake effect of features floating in the middle of a round face shape. We practiced how to measure proportions quickly, how to see the three dimensional aspects of a face, what makes a good reference photograph (or real life pose), and how to navigate your way through a difficult angle, such as the person looking up. After all that, I figured it was time to let loose a little. I had everyone grab some wet media and something to scribble with. I didn’t have any ink, so I made some with coffee and a bit of leftover clothing dye. My drawing tools for the evening were a chopstick and a paper towel. Other students used household tools like a mascara brush, garden sticks, and bamboo skewers. Hooray for adaptability! We all made a pile of portraits, and enjoyed a very fun evening while our portraits just got better and better.
For the expressive portion of our Expressive Portraits class, we drew some funny and seriously moody old fogies, including Marlon Brando and my puppy – the funniest character challenge of them all, and a playful way to end an evening.
Artworks by Mimi Torchia Boothby, Shima Bhamra, Sophie Frieda, Liz Hejlsberg, Katie Jo Keppinger, Kim Jackson, and Anne Walker.
We’ve opened this class up to newcomers! If you have some experience drawing, you are welcome to jump in for a 2 or 4 week slice of this ongoing portraits session. It will be great to see you!
Cezanne painted 29 portraits and made countless drawings of Hortense Fiquet. He drew and painted his mistress in graphite, watercolor, and oil. The first painting exists only in a photograph, and the second was of Fiquet nursing their baby. Fiquet and Cezanne met in Paris sometime around 1869. Cezanne was a 30 year old painter …
I’d like to also mention Wendy Lumsdaine, for her stitch sketches. Every one of her posts has been a tondo! Inspired? There’s still time! Every doodle counts! Start where you are, and make something. Not a perfect something, just a something. Something is infinitely more than nothing, and that’s a big win for us …
We are like crabs I was marveling out loud about how our left and right hands look the same but one works and one doesn’t, when I was gracefully informed by a dancer that one side of our body is best for fine motor skills, and the other is for strength. Could this be true?? …
[image_with_animation image_url=”8601″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] Qi Baishi (1864–1957) was one of the most beloved contemporary Chinese watercolor painters. His original name is Huang but he went by Baishi (“white stone”) as a pseudonym. Some of Qi’s major influences include the Ming dynasty artist Xu Wei (徐渭) and the early Qing dynasty painter Zhu Da (朱耷). His favorite …
Marlon Brando, some grumpy old fogies, and my puppy
I’ve been teaching an expressive portraits class on Friday nights. In the first few classes we talked about common pitfalls including the blueberry pancake effect of features floating in the middle of a round face shape. We practiced how to measure proportions quickly, how to see the three dimensional aspects of a face, what makes a good reference photograph (or real life pose), and how to navigate your way through a difficult angle, such as the person looking up. After all that, I figured it was time to let loose a little. I had everyone grab some wet media and something to scribble with. I didn’t have any ink, so I made some with coffee and a bit of leftover clothing dye. My drawing tools for the evening were a chopstick and a paper towel. Other students used household tools like a mascara brush, garden sticks, and bamboo skewers. Hooray for adaptability! We all made a pile of portraits, and enjoyed a very fun evening while our portraits just got better and better.
For the expressive portion of our Expressive Portraits class, we drew some funny and seriously moody old fogies, including Marlon Brando and my puppy – the funniest character challenge of them all, and a playful way to end an evening.
Artworks by Mimi Torchia Boothby, Shima Bhamra, Sophie Frieda, Liz Hejlsberg, Katie Jo Keppinger, Kim Jackson, and Anne Walker.
We’ve opened this class up to newcomers! If you have some experience drawing, you are welcome to jump in for a 2 or 4 week slice of this ongoing portraits session. It will be great to see you!
Expressive Portraits
Fridays 6:00-10:00pm PST
Join us!
There’s also a digital portraits class starting on Saturday mornings. Check it out!
Portrait Painting with Procreate
4 Saturdays 10:00-1:00pm PST
Starts this Saturday!
And now… puppies!
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Cezanne painted 29 portraits and made countless drawings of Hortense Fiquet. He drew and painted his mistress in graphite, watercolor, and oil. The first painting exists only in a photograph, and the second was of Fiquet nursing their baby. Fiquet and Cezanne met in Paris sometime around 1869. Cezanne was a 30 year old painter …
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I’d like to also mention Wendy Lumsdaine, for her stitch sketches. Every one of her posts has been a tondo! Inspired? There’s still time! Every doodle counts! Start where you are, and make something. Not a perfect something, just a something. Something is infinitely more than nothing, and that’s a big win for us …
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Qi Baishi
[image_with_animation image_url=”8601″ alignment=”” animation=”None” box_shadow=”none” max_width=”100%”] Qi Baishi (1864–1957) was one of the most beloved contemporary Chinese watercolor painters. His original name is Huang but he went by Baishi (“white stone”) as a pseudonym. Some of Qi’s major influences include the Ming dynasty artist Xu Wei (徐渭) and the early Qing dynasty painter Zhu Da (朱耷). His favorite …