A hundred years from now no one will ever understand how difficult it has been for me to paint these glasses with the tremors in my hand. 😄 I must say, this is an exciting and lively subject to work on. It is sunny and cheerful and I may post it on line to offer something to brighten the day. We must nourish our spirit and live in positive ways. Shalom, Diana

Today I enjoyed bible study with my granddaughter and her aunt by face time. Then I sat on my porch in the nearly 80* weather to enjoy the birds and the flowers. I prayed a lot. Here we are blessed for the time being because this is a very small rural town. Even the grocery store four miles up the road is well stalked and people are not panicked. Even so, the majority are concerned about the unknowns and the risk of infection as time goes on. The fact that we know almost all in our area causes this quarantine to take its tole. We want to visit and hug and go to churches or movies. We must consider the risk to others and so we comply with the seclusion. Things are not much different for me because in order to paint, I ordered my life in a secluded way. I’m used to it. Others are not. So I pray for us all,,,and paint. This is what I did today. After this is well dried I will apply a thin, transparent layer of flesh and then glaze with vivid red reflective light and highlight with very bright and yellow highlights. I will then refine those glasses and also the ribbon. Then I believe this will be finished. When I began this five years ago, I began two. Yes, two. I wanted one for each of the girls. I would have continued working on both but this spring I needed to be working on a cheerful work and do it in a way that brought success and accomplishment daily. So I only worked on one so as not to become more stressed. Eventually, I will go back to the other one. So thankful. Shalom, Diana

This process takes layers and layers. If I applied the exact flesh tones in tiny strokes like some methods call for, it would create a different effect. My flesh tones are known for their suppleness, depth and realistic appearance. This is how I achieve it. I will probably do at least two more layers on this. The sister on the right with the braid is wearing glasses. I have only hinted at the frames for now. I want to be careful not to make the frames too bold. This pose expresses personality and mood. It is what we look for when choosing a photo for a painting. The sunshine, shadows and graduation gown add interest.

I was not expecting to make any progress but I picked up my brush and began. I want the skin tones to dry thoroughly before I apply another transparent layer of flesh. So, I touched up eyebrows, did a few minor adjustments here and there and then decided to lay out some colors for the hair. I used raw umber for darkening hair in deep shadow. I used yellow ocher, gel and some Naples yellow light mixed with burnt sienna and raw umber to add some rich mid tones and blond sunlight. Then I used burnt sienna and Naples yellow light to lay in the sun lit hair of the brunette. Her hair is very dark brown but I love the way the bright sunshine brings out the red tones in her hair. Now I am going to do a little cleaning and organizing in my studio while I feel well enough to do it. May we all be safe and well. Prayers for all who are ill. Diana

The entire world is on a new schedule so I have no reason to complain. We all are hopefully doing our small part to support each other and keep everyone safe. My husband and I are staying home except for groceries. I also spend time with my adult grand daughter with the observation of social distance and all precautions. With all other friends, the choice is standing firm to avoid contact but we call and face time often.
Bruce had surgery last week so we have been sidetrack with our usual routine even without considering the virus. So I was happy today to work on this painting. I would like to finish it successfully so that I can get back to the other three or four I have started. My granddaughter’s difficulties had my attention for a long while and I don’t feel extremely happy about these works. When I get back to them, I hope to have a renewed optimism and energy to get them back on track. I will post on this one as I make progress on it. Blessings to you all as you adjust to our new and hopefully temporary reality. Shalom, Diana

ALLRIGHT FRIENDS, I DONT LIKE TO SPREAD FEAR BUT I JUST GOT WORD FROM LOVED ONES IN ITALY. THIS IS MUCH WORSE THAN WE CAN IMAGINE. DO NOT LEAVE YOUR HOME UNLESS ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY. TAKE MORE PRECAUTIONS THAN YOU THINK YOU NEED. I CANNOT TELL YOU HOW VERY SERIOUS THIS IS. TWO WEEKS AGO THEY WERE NOT WORRIED, NOW THEY CALLED TO WARN US.

It seems to be true that even though a picture is worth a thousand words, even so, a photo just does not do justice for representing an oil painting. This painting is coming alive but when I see this photo, it looses vibrancy and spirit. Well, it is my best effort to show you how this is coming along.
the work is slow going because of the medical issues and now even social distancing! I had a sweet visit with my granddaughter outside on the front porch in cold, rainy weather in order to guard against any possible introduction of corona virus. She got here from Ohio last night where she works at a huge public place with hundreds of different people daily. She is not ill, nor are we, but Pappy is supposed to have surgery to repair a hernia on Friday and we are trying to avoid carrying anything to a hospital Environment. I don’t think all this is necessary but we are trying to do our part to protect everyone until we know for sure what is happening. It isn’t good for humans to distance in these ways but we may be faced with a situation that is beyond anything our generation has seen before. Stay well, be safe, remain calm, and may God bless us all. HalleluYah!

I think I will title this ‘Painting Sunshine’. Even though it is not very apparent, I actually did quite a lot on this today. I repaired and refined a lot of the features, I started laying in the hair patterns too.  The daughter on the right has hair that shines red in the sunlight and the one on the left shines blond.  I really love the hair patterns and the shadow patterns on the faces. I darkened the background but I will get some deeper color in this.  I have always loved this image of my two youngest and I have duplicates being painted at the same time.  I switched to this painting because the ones I have been working on are difficult and they have been getting me down.  This one makes me really feel good.  Hope it continues to turn out well.

flat early attempt.

beginning to see the sunlight

Here is a portrait that has been sitting in my studio for quite a few years.  At the time I was working on it, I thought I was making pretty good progress but now that I have begun again, I am surprised at how much my process has changed. When returning to a painting, I do not oil out.  Instead I mix a transparent blend of the flesh tone I use as a base and a lot of Grumbacher Gel.  Layers of this make a skin tone glaze that builds up the depth and gives me a surface to work on.  I then take white or in this case, Naples Yellow Light to sculpt the brightest features and begin the formation of the skin layer.  This is how the three dimensionality is created. I have shown some of the earlier process in other paintings that I have placed here for demonstration, so I am sorry I don’t have that in this case.  I will use some of the same techniques as I proceed. I am working on three or four other subjects so there may be some space between my posts on this one.  I hope to get back to a more productive schedule.  Asking for your patience, Diana.

I just want to tell you that our family has been blessed to have learned about a treatment for my grandchild that is the first new development in the treatment of mental health disorders in years. My granddaughter had a miraculous response to the first of the six treatments. There is no way I can express the changes. Those of us who have experienced this painful journey also know that until now, we have been offered no real hope.  I just want to encourage you to do your research. Look for a clinic that has good experience and good results treating with psycedelic drugs.  There are a number of these drugs that are promising.  My search began with Johns Hopkins testing with psilocybin but the drug in our case was ketamine. We learned that it does not medicate but instead actually repairs the area of the brain that has shut down. It gets the neurons and dendrites functioning.  Find a qualified doctor. If your insurance doesn’t cover it, save your money.  It was worth it in our situation.  I hope you find it beneficial for you or your loved one.