February portrait
 

This measures 12x9" and is painted in oil on canvas mounted on a Dibond conservators panel.

Tim Giles, of New Traditions art panels gave it to me to try out.

I couldn't let it go to waste!

This was a very challenging project.

The subject has a very quiet personality.

She has very generic features.

I had to work hard to make it look like her as an individual.


I'm happy to report that her mother was able to recognize who it was.

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I'd take those "generic features" anyday! What a great pair of eyes. You've captured her quiet demeanor very effectively. Thanks for sharing this gem of a painting with us!

Wow, this one is special Bill. The smoother handling continues to be an intuitively natural way of finishing for you it seems. You have painted her in a gorgeous, very soulful way.

Was the Dibond as useful as gatorboard as a small panel backing?

Thanks for the comments folks.

Carl, the Dibond is very nice, but for most work I don't believe it is any better than canvas on gatorfoam.

It is thinner than gatorfoam and of course stronger. I think it is most useful for some kinds of field sketches.

Bill

Thanks again Bill. This is so sensitively handled.

Make My Day!
 

Bill,

I got to see this painting in person today - and two others of yours.

I entered a show in Midland and got my acceptance letter late since I moved. The only option was to drive it there (6 hours away). I whined and groaned about it, but did not want to get the folks at the museum mad at me...so off I went complaining the whole way. I left with all sorts to mommy-guilt too since one of my children has the flu. I got in late Sunday night and picked up the local paper to see if there was anything more than the oil wells to see while I was there. Lo and behold - one of your paintings I saw unveiled here recently was on the front of the arts section! Well, you can bet I high-tailed it over to the Haley library the next morning to see these. I stayed an hour studying them...in fact the security people were eyeing me pretty heavy. There was such a smoothness to this one - gorgous! By the way, a nice red sticker was on the larger one there (in case you didnt know it sold yet).

I also saw a Harley Brown and few other names I recognized. Bill, it made my trip worthwhile.

I have a question, maybe not the right section though...but how do you get that nice sheen? They are new paintings, so you are not varnishing them? Mine look so flat in comparison.

Kim my dear,

Those security people were eyeing you because you are so pretty.

Thanks for the report. It's nice to know my paintings got there in one piece. The good folks at Fedex must have gotten the wagon train through the pass. Nice to know about the red dot too. I guess I will eat breakfast tomorrow morning after all.

The even sheen is a factor of the Maroger medium I use and Rob Howard's copal retouch varnish. In spite of my best intentions, most of my work leaves the studio too soon, so I do what I can with a little retouch varnish, either dammar or copal.