I could not pull up an edit to post this with the last one so I hope this gives you the proper information. The last two posts/blogs should be seen together. Diana
Monthly Archives: August 2025
Website has problems, sorry
I discovered that I could not open my website yesterday. I worked for hours with the ai help offered. I thought it was finally fixed but then this morning I could not access it. As I looked around my previously viewed videos, I found one from Friday when I last posted. I was able to enter from there. I saved it in favorites and hope I don’t have this problem any more. I don’t have time for these delays.
So, this is a cropped image of one of William Adolph Bouguereau’s famous and valuable paintings. I have chosen this for my first Master Copy. If it turns out well, I want to feature it in my upcoming show and then I will take bids from any who wish to purchase it. This artist is a master of human form. He made a fortune selling his originals and prints when the art world was banning him from The Salon in Paris and eliminating him completely from art history books. The impressionists and abstract artists of his time wanted to rid the art world of realism and did their best to destroy his reputation as an artist. But he continued to be successful, appealing largely to the American market. In 1960, if I had been able to gather together the sum of $600 I might have been able to purchase one of his works. Now those values have exploded. I have been fortunate enough to see most of his works which are on display in galleries from Massachusetts to Florida. I have been given permission to be given a chair so that I could sit for hours in front of several to study closely every brush stroke. I have been permitted to photograph them in detail, although one circumstance had tight restrictions. We were able to attend an exhibition at the Scaife Gallery in Pittsburgh. The show was to be exhibited in, I believe, three cities only. One was in California, maybe LA, one here in Pittsburgh and one in Florida. What a blessing it was to see it.
I have finally reached the place where I am strongly compelled to begin this challenge. Already, while making the drawing, I appreciate the expertise Bouguereau had in every aspect of executing the nuances of his subject. His hair alone shows a total understanding of the twists and turns of a curl. He makes it all seem so simple.
I have used Diana’s Grid Tool to be sure that my drawing is true to Bouguereau’s vision. Now I will begin to lay down the image in oils. I will post as often as I can as long as this technology does not break down. Till next time, Diana
Second flesh layer
You can see already that the flesh is evening out and the three dimensionality is progressing. I won’t say much about this except that I am using a mixture of purples mixed with flesh for her shadows. She has a lot of pinks in her skin. The shadows are deep but not blackish. I will need to spend a lot of time completing several paintings so they can be ready for an upcoming exhibition. More about that later.
Please consider checking out a unique tool that I designed for myself and anyone who uses a grid for any reason. If you want to see more about this, go to Diana’s grid tool on YouTube and check an earlier post where I describe it thoroughly. Every one who has this is very happy with the results they get. Till later, Diana
Here we go!
Everyone is busy, I know. But sometimes it seems like I have a calendar gremlin who keeps filling up all the dates on my schedule. Today is the first I have seriously painted in weeks. Just to fill you in, we are expecting house guests in February. This is our beloved AFSDaughter from Sardegnia whom we have not seen since her wedding. She is coming with her husband and two teen boys!! What a joy! But, I have been filling my tiny house with art supplies and canvasses and frames. Also, I hoarded all the fabric I could get at cheap prices when I saw how the fabric or sewing market was going. The first thing I had to do before organizing all that was to sell all the vintage clothing I kept because I knew its value. I got that out of here first and now everything is moving along to be able have a wonderful visit. And, plus, I have been motivated to get my house in order so the girls will not have so much to deal with when the time comes.
yesterday was tough because we attended a visitation for a great friend who is gone too soon. He was good to everyone and all those people will feel his absence.
I want to remind all you artists, especially local or nearby, to please pull up the instruction video for my grid tool to see how helpful it is for increasing the size of your work and also getting a better likeness. Pull it up by searching ‘Diana’s Grid Tool’ Contact me by email at brucendiana@verizon.net. Then I will give you my phone number and we can make arrangements for you to pick it up.
check out the photo above to see the first layer of flesh and some work on the curls. This layer always looks blotchy but it will even out as always. So for now, Shalom. Diana
Still Trying
As I began uploading the document and photo, I keep getting messages that my website has crashed. Every once in a while, like now, I can get in but I have difficulty downloading. I think I got all the info you need loaded. I will now look to see which pages are fully available to you. When this happens, I usually must just give it some time. Hope all is well. Diana
The Day Has Arrived
Finally, I have DIANA’S GRID TOOL ready to offer to local artists, teachers and draftsmen. I am going to download my sale sheet where you can see all the specifics. I hope you will find this tool as useful as I have. Most sincerely, Diana Let me try to put the document on the next post.
Helen Hinchman Platinum Award
Community Art Center Johnstown, PA. This is a memorial Exhibit set up by two women so their ideals of representational or figurative art could continue to be aplauded. Their memorial gifts and plans for this event make possible for up to four very generous awards selected by a qualified juror. This year I reached my goal of being chosen for the top award. But the most memorable reward is the reception that this painting and the other that was jurored in received during the evening. I was told that other visitors since the show was hung have also spoken highly about the detail and emotion portrayed in these subjects. I share this now with you. Thank you all for following my blog and hopefully enjoying and learning as we go along. Shalom, Diana
Diana Williams Portraits 