My students have heard me say, ”portrait painting is the art of correcting”. It just makes sense. if we have the hand and eye to get it right with the first mark, then we should do well from there. Most of us would not be doing this if we did not have the patience and the ability to see minute details. Making a good likeness is usually possible only when we are willing to constantly examine our reference for the tiny details that make us individuals.

Today, I first added tiny adjustments to the brights. They are so small, I doubt you will be able to find them. Next, using the same dark, i marked ONLY the main shapes and deep darks spots of the hair patterns. The marks should not be bold. Even though the color is the same dark that I used for the undercoat, I stress that the marks should be transparent. This is done by the pressure used, not so much the amount of paint or intensity of color. This turns out to be important as we go on to other steps, mostly because we don’t want to fight the dark paint when adding color. Forgive me if I repeat instructions. Learning portraits can be complicated and it is good to be reminded. Also be prepared to adapt and do things in different ways. We must make these decisions based on each situation and every variable involved. I do hope these examples are useful for you. Hugs, Diana