Sunday Inspiration: J. Kirk Richards Paints a Portrait

Little boat

A little 5 x7 experiment.

I know, I'm just posting a lot of so-so bits and pieces right now. I'm gearing up for some bigger work and I'm testing colors and glazes.

This one was a test of a limited palette as well as glazing in acrylics.

Colors:

Titanium white
Burnt umber
Alizarin crimson permanent
Ultramarine blue
Cadmium yellow pale

I don't like the way the yellow glaze added too much yellow to the image. I wanted to warm up the cold blues a little... the yellow went too far and added an unnatural cast.

Good thing I didn't do that on anything important. I once messed up a portrait royally with the wrong glaze. Made the subject look like he had liver issues.

This is why I should have gone to an atelier, not a state university.

There, I would've learned little silly things like "how to render forms" and "how color works," rather than great and glorious concepts like "how does this tone make us feel" and "everything is equally valid."

On the upside, I did manage to match my reference photo with this limited palette. These are the colors recommended by Will Kemp. I'm impressed with their versatility.

Laundry Day

Laundry Day. 8 x 10". Oil on canvas.

A quick figure sketch in oils.

Sunday Inspiration: Plein Air Painting in New York City

Cool as heck:



I've never tried painting in the city before. I might have to go hit Gainesville one day... or even better, Ybor city.

.357

I was fooling around with my acrylics a couple of nights ago and decided to paint a portrait of one of my favorite firearms.

.357. 5" x 7", acrylic on canvas.

The gun was painted in burnt umber and titanium white.

The background is cadmium yellow light, ultramarine and titanium white.