New pup

[Terri Ficenec]

Hi Simon-- Thanks! Yeah, that pattern in the sofa was a little intimidating initially. . . wanted to downplay it a bit but thought the contrast between him all in solids against the relative 'busyness' of the couch and pillows set him off nicely. Focussing in on the texture and the way the light hits the fabric, rather than the pattern itself helped to keep it manageable.

Janet and Marina -- thank you both!

Alex--Thanks for all the compliments! He's already got an older sister to share that puppy with, so it's not lacking for attention! (guess I should say I painted the sister's portrait back in 2004--the figure skater)

[Alexandra Tyng]

So the family called you back--that's always a good sign, at any point in one's career.

I'm curious: when you paint patterns, especially complex ones like this, do you paint the base color with all its light, shadow, highlights, etc., and then paint the pattern on top, or do you tackle it as a jigsaw puzzle all at once?

[John Reidy]

Terri,

You've done it again - a beautiful painting. I love your values, composition and the feeling (both the subject and the atmosphere). I admire your work.

[Terri Ficenec]

Alex -- Yes, it is so affirming when a family calls back wanting more of your work. I've done it both ways with patterns. . . If theres a fairly solid ground color it can be easier to paint the ground with lights and shadow then sort of glaze on the pattern. For this one, the fabric itself was more of a mosaic of colors and the way the light shone on the fabric would change the color from warm to cool and somewhat obscure the pattern as well. . . so I approached it more organically. . . sort of marking in placement of the pattern for an area, dealing with color and value for that area then 'growing' it into adjacent areas. I've got a 'work in progress' page that shows some of that here. (Please ignore that pointy chin throughout most of the wip. . . I didn't want to get sidetracked with finishing/correcting his features until I'd gotten the bulk of the background in!)

John -- Thanks so much!

[Enzie Shahmiri]

Terri, beautiful as always. I took a look at your web site and enjoyed your WIP section. Your work is wonderful and I enjoyed seeing how you work.

[Terri Ficenec]

Thanks Enzie!

[Kimberly Dow]

Terri - another terrific one! I would recognize your style anywhere now. You have a way with children especially. Just beautiful.