Nora

[Molly Sherrick Phifer]

This is my first post in the critiques section. It is also my first oil portrait not done in a class. The subject is my oldest child. I used a reference photo (head only) for expression and likeness and also did some work from life. My palette included: yellow ochre, raw umber, venetian red, indian red, flake white and ivory back.

The photo could be better. I will post a new one in the a.m. This one has some rough transitions, especially in the neck area, that look much better in person. I have also posted the reference, but have not adhered to it slavishly. I am happy with the likeness.

Edit: I have posted a new photo of the painting that better represents the color etc.

Thanks in advance for looking. I appreciate all comments!

[Marcus Lim]

Hi, i awed by the accuracy of your painting. However, i'm always concerned of the use of colors for painting portraits. As far as concerned, i find the colors on the painting "too cold", though the reference photos seem to be that way. What i'm trying to say is that no matter whether the painting is on the cold or on the warm side, flesh colors ultimately tend towards the warm spectrum...does this makes sense to you?

[Molly Sherrick Phifer]

I really appreciate your reply and comments. I agree about the coldness of the colors. This a.m. I have posted a newer photo of the painting that shows the color better. Yesterday I had tried to adjust the colors, but for some reason, the red tones looked much brighter in some areas and then toning them down cause other areas to go cold.

I still think the colors in the painting itself could be better, but I'm not sure what to do with them to make them look better.

[Brenda Ellis]

Hi Molly,
Are you using white in your flesh tones? You may be using too much white, when you could lighten things with naples yellow or something warmer than white.
What colors did you use for the flesh tones?

[Molly Sherrick Phifer]

Hi Brenda,

I did use white in some flesh tones and yellow ochre light also to lighten. The tones I'm not happy with are the shadow tones on the neck area, and am thinking that maybe using the naples yellow to lighten the burnt umber and venetian red might work better. The complexion in the face looks pretty accurate to her complexion in life. The photograph of her looks somewhat yellower than her actual complexion.

I will try out some mixing experiments with using the naples yellow and see how that looks. Thanks for the tip!

[Molly Sherrick Phifer]

I remixed the darks without white, substituting naples yellow and/or yellow ochre. I ended up having to re-do the lights as well (naturally) because with the new shadow colors she looked too pasty. She is very fair, however.

Here's the update and a detail. Please let me know what you think, and see if I wrecked anything.

[Alexandra Tyng]

Molly!

This is coming along so well (and your daughter is beautiful, by the way). I know when I paint my daughter I am totally immersed in emotion, while at another level feeling the challenge of the painting process.

Your palette is, I think, different from mine. For the half-tones, I might use perm. rose, cad yellow deep (W-N), a small amount of white, and add some ultramarine blue to grey the cad yellow deep. For the shadow areas, I probably would mix some ultramarine+cad orange+perm rose. In the light, I think earth tones work well for skin, and I use them often. Some of my favorites are mixtures of venetian red, raw sienna, burnt sienna, and yellow ochre half burnt (old Holland). But I don't think earth tones work as well as cadmiums in the halftones or shadows because they do not give the illusion of transparency. It's all too easy to made mud with them. That is just my opinion, and it could be that I never learned to use them well! So I'm not laying down any law here, just making suggestions.

I noticed that your areas of halftone could use more attention, i.e., the forehead, the left (on the painting) cheek, under that eye, and on the left side of the upper lip. Also the turning edges on the (our) right. The value changes in these areas are subtle and important. The neck, which is in shadow, reads as a flat triangle rather than a rounded shape with a hollow to the (our) left of the throat.

Other than that, the only thing that stands out is the left (our left) side of the upper lip, which needs to be more elongated. Right now it is bunched up towards the right.

Alex

[Molly Sherrick Phifer]

Thanks so much, Alex!

Your palette sounds luscious! I used the colors I did because they are in Marvin Mattelson's palette and I'll be studying with him in a couple of weeks. The fact that I am a rank novice in mixing paint colors (due to my dry media background) makes it all the more likely that I stumble with these things. Ouch. I have learned volumes this past week! Mostly by accident.

I did muddle through some changes before I saw your post and will also look closely at the areas you suggest. Specifically, I worked on the overly flat tendon on the neck. I was beginning to worry that I would have to call this portrait, "The Neck". Thank you Alex, and also to Lisa Ober who has been coaching me through e-mail!

Here's my update:

[Brenda Ellis]

Welcome to my dilemma, Molly!
There are as many palette combinations as there are artists out there. I tried Marvin's palette on my own and had trouble with it too. There is a lot of neutral in it and for someone like me that spells trouble. Now I am using brighter colors to start with and neutralizing them with compliments. I still can lay out my palette in "values" so that helps a lot, but If I don't start with color, I get muddy and pasty really fast.
(It may be better to wait until you've worked with Marvin to use his palette.)
Another tip I got recently that helped me with my current portrait is to mix the color on the palette and apply the specific color to the specific area. Wait to blend until the very last. (Overblending was also a problem of mine...still is if I'm not careful!)

As far as drawing, the portrait's nose looks sharper than Nora's actual nose. Looking at your detail photo, I love the soft edges and the eyes are lovely!
Well, better to listen to pro's like Alexandra and Lisa than me, but I just thought I'd share with you what I've learned. I think everyone has to find what works for them through trial and error. I'm sure you know this!

I will look forward to watching this progress to completion!

[Molly Sherrick Phifer]

Hi Brenda!
I have to admit that I have a tendency to make my daughter's nose a bit pointier than it is naturally. It tends to move around slightly, getting wider and narrower as I change shadows, etc.
One thing no one mentioned yet is that what started out as highights in her hair stayed chunky because Nora loves the look. At one time she had chunky blond streaks and she begged me to keep the chunks in.

I'm sure as I go along, I'll find my best color combinations. It may take months or years, but I love beautiful color and I'm willing to work at it. For now, I guess, I'll be experimenting with "mud pies"! I am quite certain that I have violated some basic principles of this palette, unwittingly. Once I get this palette worked out in Marvin's class, I'll be heading off to Arizona to take Chris Saper's workshop. I really adore both (different) ways of approaching flesh tones.

Maybe when I get the color mixing worked out, I can paint this over again. Hmmm. I wonder how long that will take?