Thursday, November 19, 2009

Blocking in a commission



First stage portrait commission
drawing the shapes and
blocking them in in colour
acrylic on canvas
18 x 24 inches
Barbara Muir © 2009

Here is the first stage in a commission
portrait. Well of course not the first stage,
because it's a photo portrait, so I have to
pick the image that says the most to me, blow it
up as an 8 x 10 " xerox, stare at it for hours,
then draw a fairly thorough rough drawing
onto my canvas. I wouldn't usually include
lettering on clothing, but I like how the
lettering says Mom Happy Trails, which
seems a cheery message. At the moment the
painting is mostly at the underpainting stage.

I like the pose of the brothers. My challenge
right now is just to keep the happiness I see
emerging, and my feeling of excitement about
the work. I love how the little brother is nestled
against his older brother. They are beautiful boys, and
I'm excited about the project, the pose, and
the expression.

Note: It looks like there's a typo on the shirt in
Trails -- I'll have to double check the spelling
on the reference. Too funny. I laughed this
morning looking at it. And no I didn't have
anything to drink except coffee.

More to follow.

Have a loving-your-work day.

4 comments:

Liza Hirst said...

Hi Barbara,
Yes, they're sweet! Bonne continuation, as they say here in France! Hope you get a chance to rest a bit at the weekend!

eldon warren said...

Cool, reminds me of my two grandsons. I can produce a photo almost identical to this piece. Keep it coming. Great start.
EW

Barbara Muir said...

Hi Liza,

Thanks so much. They are completely sweet. Merci. Thanks for your kind wishes I hear my husband vacuuming and that is music to my ears. Maybe I'll read my novel for a bit.

I hope you have a super weekend to my friend.

xoxoxoxoxoBarbara

Barbara Muir said...

Hi Eldon,

Wow! I can't believe you have two grandsons already. Good for you. I know as a mother of two sons I find pictures of brothers especially delightful.

Take care,

Barbara

Portrait Artist

My photo
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
I paint and draw on commission and for shows. To commission a portrait, or purchase one of my paintings please contact me at: barbara.muir@sympatico.ca
A major highlight in my career? Drawing Oprah Winfrey live via Skype for her show "Where in the Skype are you? Galleries: Studio Vogue Gallery, Toronto, Canada. The Amsterdam Whitney Gallery, New York City. Gallery at the Porch Door, Kingston, Canada. Your positive comments on this blog mean the world to me. I'd love to hear from you!