Dear Paul,

Welcome, and thanks! The colors are different (better?) in life. Some nuances get lost in digital translation here.

Garth

Dear Tom,

You always relay the kindest response! Thanks, I'm speechless again!....

Garth

Well dear Linda,

You are probably right. My workflow can be stupendously complex at times. I would not wish the grief upon anyone!

Garth :bewildere

Which bar?
 

[QUOTE=Carlos Ygoa]You

Garth,

How, being reply #45, do I possibly say anything that hasn't already been said?

It doesn't matter, I'm speechless. This is wonderful! I guess congratulations on a
yet another great job and you absolutely blow me away will have to do.

It is 6:41 a.m for me and although I love my children dearly, I can't wait for them to get up and get out the door to school so I can paint today. Seeing this makes me want to be a better painter.

Janel

PS) Do you do a Google search to come up with 10,000 ways to say "THANKS"? Because I would guess you have the most thank you's than anyone on this forum.
Don't get me wrong, you have earned it.

Dear Janel,

No matter, we are both speechless it seems. Even your kind thoughts are always appreciated. I am glad to hear when you and others are genuinely inspired to get to what's happening on the easels before you.

Best,

Garth

Garth, what else can I say that someone hasn't already said? Stunning!! Reds are so hard to balance and so few artists can pull it off, and here you REALLY pulled it off! I'm still in awe of this painting--I think I have a new favorite of yours!

take care,

Renee

Squeezing my way in here....to...add...just......one.........more..... ......huge..............pat-on-the-back!
Blown away yet again. Can't wait to see what you do next.

Incredible, truly stunning!

.

I cannot recall ever having seen a better portrait.

Simon

Dear Renee, Heidi, Michele, Mark, and Simon,

My goodness, Thank you all!

Michele, I applaud you. Your Governor portrait is more than stunning and deserving of its universal appeal.

Mark, I think you hit the nail on the head. This did seem more like a scientific investigation than a painting in progress at times!

Simon, I am absolutely tongue tied. I know you are sincere, yet there are many great portraits preceding this that surely beat this handily, at least to me. But thanks!

Garth

WIP images of this portrait:
 

Increasingly there has been an interest in seeing this portrait as a work in progress, and being able to discuss aspects of the portrait in greater depth.

Here's a link to an active critique discussion including four WIP progressive images scaled with the completed portrait. One will have to scroll down the page to view them. The images have the advantage of being in a higher resolution than can be presented here on this Forum. There is also a much higher resolution image at the start of the discussion link, making the portrait clearer to view than ever. There has been quite a lot of feedback and exchange regarding this portrait there, and I thought it would be beneficial to share the link for those interested.

Regards,

Garth

I liked the way you developed it very much, I didn't think you started with those colors because once you mentioned the use of greys.
Great painting Garth.
Thanks for sharing this, and I'm looking forward for the other WIP too.

Thanks Claudemir. I used no grays or grisalle underpainting. There is nothing wrong with that approach but it is not for me at this time. In fact most of this portrait was very directly painted in full color development, once I had an inkling of where to position the colors.

Here is a link to the high resolution image at thestart of the linked discussion. It's sharp, revealing flaws and all! :!

Garth

Yeah! that's a show!
I had already visited that page when you gave the first link.
Tell me Garth, how long did it take to paint that?

The first toning washes were applied on December 1st, about five weeks before the unveiling on January 6th. That's enough time, right?

Garth

Thanks for posting the link to the WIP shots. It helps me to understand the process you went through in creating this truly magnificent portrait!

.

Dude, Thanks for the peek into the process used for this piece. No matter what anyone thinks of this style of work, you (your work) obviously resides at the high water mark that others will compair and contrast as to what can be accomplished in oil paint.


Garth wrote:
Edit: Actually David, I kind of recall that it was around the time of your discussion about using tonal relationships to commence a painting that I was getting started on this. Come to think of it, you influenced my painting!


Let me know if I can help you out on any of your future projects.

Excellent job Garth - it's great to see you and Michele getting such high profile work AND doing such excellent work - Congrats to you

Linda

It's confirmed Garth! You are NUTS!!!!
 

Garth....

This painting is so **** amazing... For the longest time I thought it was a photograph, then I realized it wasn't.

Your knowledge of color and draftsmanship is impeccable in this piece.... This should be your entry for PSA 2006.... a Grand Prize winner for sure.....

This painting must have taken you forever!

Lets see more now!!!
Tony

Yes Tony,
I guy has to study a thousand years to paint that way.

Tony Pro wrote: I agree. Garth, don't you think this gentleman would be honored by such a thing, too? Ask them if you can enter it!

Dear Michele, Mark, David C., Linda N., Tony, Claudemir, and Michele (again!),

Many thanks!

Michele: I have to apologize to Lacey. I recall loosely agreeing to make a work-in-progress thread for this portrait. Unfortunately I became so stressed by the deadline, it became unthinkable at the time.

Mark: Thanks, there may always remain some mystery in my process.

David: What you discussed did influence a little. That is what is so great about this Forum as a resource for all.

Linda: So nice to hear from you! I am thrilled with this apparent syncronicity Michele and I are experiencing. What a stunning Governor's portrait!

Tony: Thanks for the arm-twist suggestion! I will have to request very carefully. The Historical Society consists of very skilled lawyers, to whom I would need to sell this idea.

Claudemir: Well that's an exaggeration for certain! Thanks for your compliment.

Michele: I know the Judge would be honored. Maybe I can ask for his assistance in the matter. Thanks! I think you must seek the same persuasion with your Governor client!

Garth

Business Cards
 

I never thought much of the power of a simple business card, but having printed and distributed only a few dozen of this portrait of Judge Giles, I received a phone call that floored me this morning. Two Congressmen, one from Pennsylvania, and another from Florida called me this morning, relating how pleased they were to have received this card, and that they were actively trying to find a colleage who needs a portrait. So far no one they know needs a portrait, but I thanked them for their efforts and consideration just the same. They each want to see the portrait the next time they are in Philadelphia. You never know! It's just good luck I guess.

Garth

I cannot say anything more than what's been said in regard to admiring this portrait save this (and mark my words, folks): This portrait will go down in the art history books as one of the best of the early 21st century.

Sounds silly? Yeah, we'll see. I haven't said that about ANY of the top dogs in this industry & I don't even know Garth that well - but I know what the word "halcyon" means, and we're looking at the top piece produced in the past decade, contests be d*mned.

And the image on a business card, Garth? Let me put it this way: Wear cargo pants, because you're going to need lots of pockets for all the money people will be throwing at you.

This is the new bar; Garth has set it. Sorry to put you on the spot, my friend - but you painted your way into it! I'm just floored that I'm around to witness such a thing.

Dear Rob,

Now as you might guess, I am even more floored with the kind exuberance of your response. I am a little speechless but entirely appreciative. Seriously, I hope folks don't think i just paid you handsomely for what you wrote, but if you wish to be my first ever publicist, you are hired!

Garth

Well, I'm going to start with freebies.

I'm sending a link to all my students to take a good, long look at this painting. They may cry a little, but it will be good for them.

Then, I'm sending a link to all the painting faculty at NHIA so they can send it to their students. I'm sure they will cry, too.

I'm toying with the idea of wearing a sandwich board with "GARTH IS DA MAN" on it, and walking around town.

All right, that last one may require some re-tooling.

Garth,
Whether one is a huge fan of photo realism or not, the degree of skill and dedication required to paint such a finish is enormous and unobtainable by most, so hats off to you! This is quite an accomplishment, and a beautiful piece of work. I would love to come visit you in your studio and see the mad scientist at work next time I'm in the Philly area.

On another post I saw how you coordinated your grey scale with Photoshop and I wonder if you could tell me how this is done or perhaps refer me to a thread where this is already discussed. At this point, I dont even know how to get Photoshop to identify the values of an image.
Thanks much,
Mark

Hey Garth, what a nice way to wake up in the morning! Were the two congressmen connected somehow, or were they entirely separate but synchronistic events? Either way, you are in, friend!

Hi Alex,

There was one phone call with two congressmen. The Pennsylvania congressman called on his cell phone, while the Florida congressman was across tha aisle on a charter tour bus, all full of congress members on a morning's excusion to an undisclosed destination. They were both very friendly. Well I should admit that the Florida congressman actually recalled for me that we in fact attended grade school together. The world gets smaller! The Pennsylvania congressman was the one who gave him the business card. Mystery partially solved. :sunnysmil

Garth

Rob, you are too much! I hope nobody actually cries. I showed this portrait to my own class and none of them shed any tears over this. :)

Garth

Hi Mark,

Well for starters, I generated a 101-level grayscale in Photoshop (a time-consuming task) that I carefully calibrated for my printer.

As for identifying digital value levels in Photoshop, the tab next to the Navigator menu is the Information menu. The menu will automatically display the value readout of wherever the cursor is on the image. I find it helpful to convert to L.a.b. scale instead of RGB (for 101 levels). Don't get too excited about this technology though; it is better to sort through all these value relationships with your own eyes when painting. Painting by numbers is a sure way to make your painting degrade into a bad copy of a photograph. On the other hand, it is useful for studying and comparing value relationships in the photo reference. Just don't copy this blindly onto the canvas. Interpretation is needed.

I hope this helps answer your questions.

Garth

Oh I see what you mean. The world definately does not need another copy of a photograph. Thanks much!