Step 3 -- a rough drawing in charcoal
charcoal on acrylic on canvas
36 x 48 inches
Barbara Muir © 2009
(this series of photos shows the very
beginnings of the work on canvas
for a large double portrait.)
Step 2
spreading the paint to make the ground
Step 1
Colour is squeezed right on the canvas
to start creating the orange ground I prefer.
for awhile. It's a 4' x 3' painting on the vertical. Tonight
I had models in the studio playing the characters. Luckily
I have a beautiful vintage dress that is perfect for the woman,
and the man wore a jacket and tie. Few men are as formal as the
husband in this painting would have been going out on a date
a few decades ago.
The models looked great and were completely inspiring.
I did a quick sketch, so you could see how the couple
are going to be placed on the canvas. Then I'll be working
from the photos I have of the actual couple and the photos I have
of my models posing as the couple. These two had the
right attitude -- they seem pretty crazy about each
other, and the couple I'm painting were deeply in love.
I really enjoy painting love, and people in formal dress, so this
is a delightful assignment. Plus I love painting big.
Have a getting-ready-to-go-somewhere-special day.
4 comments:
I'm primarily an oil painter but wanted to play with acrylics and I discovered you. Love your work. Posting the steps in a painting is very helpful.
Hi Chris,
The new open acrylics work a bit like oil. You might enjoy them. They dry a little bit more slowly than the regular acrylics. Glad you like my steps. More to come!
Take care,
Barbara
I really like that bright bold color and the totally energetic brush work you've started this painting with. I can hardly wait to see how it works out. I'm already impressed.
Eldon
Hi Eldon,
You are so wonderful! I'd love to keep going with a four inch brush,
but I think I need to get a bit finer. Commissions tend to be about accuracy, as well as art. Right?
You are super.
Take care,
Barbara
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