I thought I would add a short note to tell you that I have been occupied with a health concern, trying to get answers to this problem. I have had increasing pain through out the summer but in September I called for an appointment to consult my doctor. Over the next several weeks, meds and tests, we ruled out the normal back and body pain and concluded that this extreme pain is in my gut, not my stomach. There have been a number of theories as to what is causing the pain but none have proven to be correct. No doctor was able to offer any help for the pain, which was totally debilitating, so I put myself on a liquid diet, then on pureed foods for about eleven days. When I finally had the courage to eat a regular meal, the pain had subsided and was tolerable. Something must have healed. I am still looking for answers.

I have not gotten much done on my painting. Doctoring takes a lot of time and energy and I haven’t felt well enough to paint. I am doing a little now and will try soon to upload a photo. I hope to work this year on the miniatures and a couple of other projects that are not finished. I have lost interest in shows. Covid has taken away our right to gather and the social events are canceled. I miss my friends. I want to get myself more motivated and get back to a regular routine of painting every day. I am coaching two portrait students and it helps our psyche to be together.

So for now, I wish you good art and good health. I will get back into a schedule soon. Till then, shalom. Diana

Guys, I hate it when things get changed. It may take me days to figure out how to post on here now that some one who runs this thinks it needs an update. Sorry

don’t have much time to post but I wanted to get you all up to date on this work . I am almost finished. I may do another layer of flesh and also glaze in some rich cheek pinks, a little more on the hair, just some darks, I think. Till then, stay well.

When this painting sits downstairs on my fireplace, it glows. A portrait that looks so simple, is simply NOT.  I began with the desire to capture, of course, the likeness. But also I wanted the expression and the strong moody light. I felt that this is what would captivate the viewer. I was visiting my daughters recently so missed some posts. You can see that I am working on hair and eyes. I am still not satisfied with the shadows in the face. This area has not jumped over that depth threshold. I will keep working.

During the summer of 2019, most of us were unaware of the looming tragedy that was hanging like a storm cloud above us. Since then, our world has changed. Just look at the little face masked toddlers with their parents. Do any of us think about the drastic changes in their routines. Or even how many more are hungry or frightened. I am convinced that our ‘leaders’ have made unwise decisions. Even now I read more are still dying from flu than the virus and no one quarantines for that. Since when have we ever quarantined the healthy and caused devastation in whole societies. Of course this is a pandemic threat but I believe we are not applying ancient practical wisdom in this dire situation. Don’t allow the media to dictate our responses. Let’s return to common sense. Care for our families, protect others, avoid violence or places where violence is predictable. Remain out of public places if you believe you are exposed. Love and continue to do art if possible. Pray. Keep your eyes open and your mind alert. May you be blessed. Diana

I have added another layer of flesh with cool purples and warm reds. I have added some careful touches to the eyes and yet they will take a lot of work to be right. I hope to work more on the hair tomorrow. The light in this one is so real.

I am rushing to finish. I don’t have time to say much, I just wanted to let you seee the updated work. Hugs

In my photo library, these shots are together, side by side. I wish I could show you four or five like that. It really emphasizes the changes. The light shows brighter in person. The skin color needs some adjusting. The eyes will get form and lashes and shadows. Then the hair which is only suggested right now. I probably won’t rework the hair until the flesh is finished. Shalom, Diana

it may not seem like there is a change but the details are suggested. It is like placing a guide line. You may not want a bold mark but you can proceed better if you know what is ahead.

Following the patterns of light and shadow that I established I now begin to add the flesh coloring. I have applied a transparent half paste mixture of a flesh tone that will head in the right direction for this child’s skin color. I mix flake white and Naples yellow light to use to modify and mold the face. It is more like carving or molding clay than painting. I lay in the light, allowing the flesh tone to remain darker in the shadows. Later I will glaze the rosy tones and the darks. This achieves a depth and suppleness to the flesh. Oh, yes. I always tell my students that it will remain blotchy until several layers have been applied.

When an artist spends days making marks on canvas, that seems simple. No spectator sees or hears the decision making that goes on in their brain and neither could they have any concept of the visual study that must be done to capture likeness and spirit with paint, texture, color and value. After a days work I bring a portrait to my living room where I will spend several hours intermittently studying from across the room. I analyze. I search for necessary corrections. I virtually modify. I decide on improvements. Right now I am marveling at the illusion of soft fabric in the first painting layer of a sleeve. I am thinking and planning what can be the spotlight of a portrait; the eyes. During the time I have devoted to perfecting the portrait, I have come to understand the way light flows across the cheek, I have learned that the line of the mouth is critical to achieving a likeness and I have fallen in love with the message in the eyes. Every stroke is thoughtfully placed the same way an author or a poet creates a mood with words. The sense of accomplishment is fulfilling and it is the force that propels me to the next painting.

Here is where many get frustrated and discouraged and yet I tell my students to enjoy the part where they get to slowly build a masterpiece. A wonderful portrait is not laid down on canvas with a slash and dash formula. It takes a lot of patience and planning to make this look effortless. Today, after a long morning in the garden, thankfully with a strong willing helper, I came to my work in the studio. Upon careful examination and thought, I decided to lighten and brighten the background. I put some planning strokes and first layer of color into the sleeve and neckline of the dress. I even whited out the background to extend the front edge of the dress to make it hang in a more natural way. I carefully plotted out the curls. The artist must decide if she wants the hair impressionistic or more realistic. For this one I am going for realism. Then I studied the line, just the line where the lips touch, and refined the drawing. Don’t let the eyes fool you. Work on perfecting them touch by touch, stroke by stroke. Build them up layer by layer. They can be the most beautiful part of a portrait. Don’t use heavy dark paint in the beginning or you will loose your opportunity to correct and perfect them. This child has wonderful features and I am aiming to capture the look of wonder and mystery in her gaze. Happy painting. Diana

here I have mixed a half paste of transparent idea gell with titanium white and flake white. I paint it over the dried portrait, making sure it is covering all and deep into the linen pores. Then I take a soft fan brush and buff it until the portrait emerges. I want a good surface to work on. Then I use titanium full strength to reemphasize all the brightest areas and pay close attention to getting the likeness perfected. An artist must see forward and know what she is aiming for. I can’t work today because I have an eye appointment. Diana

Here is where I left off last week. If I have time today I will put another layer on the background to lighten it up and then I will apply a half paste of white to the flesh. This creates a simulation of skin over the structure of the face. Also, I will make corrections on the eyes and hair outline. Hope I get that all in today, but first I must send in digital entry to the Allied Artist’s show.

I will copy and paste if I am able to.
Ok, I didn’t get that screen shot cropped before I posted it, sorry. I just want to add some notes for you portrait artists. In this first photo I have transferred the drawing. I had several reference photos and I combined them without computer, that is, I just made the changes with pose to put together the light, position of face, body angle and hair. I had a lot of smudges from the transfer because of the heat today and condition of my painting mixture. I just used Windsor Newton artists oils and some extra linseed oil. I just used a dry brush to move the paint around and a quip or two to remove some. Then I applied the white straight to the canvas and made it thinner or heavier by manipulating the pressure and amount of paint. After I refined all the painted areas, I buffed it smooth with a fan brush. The paint dried way too fast in this heat. I will let it dry now and then I will probably apply a thin color was to get a background color started. I must adjust the eyes a little. They aren’t quite right. Till next time. Diana

Well, I have heard of Writer’s block and Artist’s Block but this is different.  Usually nothing interrupts my creative motion. Actually for me and my husband, this quarantine didn’t change much of our routine.   So here we are, with nothing but time on our hands. Even so, I find myself sitting at my easel not motivated to put any mark down.  I am feeling like nothing I want to paint is good enough.  So I find an area of the painting that isn’t too important and I do that for a couple of hours. Maybe the back ground or maybe an arm or a piece of clothing.  The next day, the same thing happens.  Of course, I am also having my schedule messed up by other people’s difficulties and I feel driven to make a lot of phone calls to encourage loved ones or help one of my kids with something. It just seems like months are going by without much accomplishment.  Even worse, when I look at the work I have finished, I am just not happy with it. This is not normal. Now, I am getting irate.  I am angry at the bad choices made by people in power and I am frustrated about my constitutional rights being trampled.  Not only that but I am horrified at what is going on with people of all races. We have lost our dignity and we have no trace of morals in the actions and events taking place.  It is good that every once in a while we learn of someone who has acted with human kindness and decency. Not only is violence and pestilence hurting people, now we are suffering depression too.  I am encouraged by those who are beginning to say NO to all this, standing up for reason and calmness in such a bad situation. I am also appalled by how far back we have fallen in our society.  Have we actually chosen lawlessness? I must put my faith in Yah, And I must count on the prevailing goodness of the majority.  

As things begin to open up, art events are again being planned.  I have made choices of pieces to show and Bruce and I have picked out framing material. Of course, I should have expected another wrench to be thrown into the works.  Here I am, working away on a portrait that I am not happy with, trying to get it finished in time for one of these shows and I get this impulse to start an impossible task!! There is an image of a huge rocky vista in Argentina where my daughter and her friend visited just before we learned about this virus.  My daughter and her friend are in the forefront, both looking amazing with this monumental landscape behind them.  I have TWO WEEKS, JUST TWO WEEKS, till the show entry date.  I cannot resist.  I go into marathon painting mode and my husband volunteers to cook supper every night for those two weeks.  I have always taken months to complete paintings.  But, yes, I got this done.  And entered. I will show you an image but the photos are on my ipad so I will have to put them up on another blog entry. Well, let me check to see if there is an image in my photo gallery on my computer.

This is 42 inches across. I hope people enjoy it.  It is entitled, ‘Argentina- Our Amazing Journey. It is not only about the journey to a new country, but about the amazing journey of these girls friendship.  It could be a movie.  Hugs and love to all my artist and art admirers friends. Shalom, Diana

This may not look much different but if you look closely, you will see small changes.  I put in some fly away hairs, toned down the white teeth, highlighted the eyes and put in a signature.  I just sent the image off to Latrobe Art Center to be entered into their open show.  It will be a virtual show this year, thanks to the virus. A new reality, yes, but I will not concede to a new normal.  Nothing about this is normal.  I try to paint every day, but weeks keep flowing by and I barely have time to touch brush to canvas.  I really feel like I am loosing my opportunity to paint but so many other options keep popping up.  I have had trouble concentrating even when I am in front of my work. I have concerns about 5G and how it is affecting people.  All I can do is keep on trying.  I put aside some of my larger works so that I might have better results on a smaller, less complicated subject. I am about to finish a small classic image of a Phalenopsis Orchid. It posed so nicely and never moved. I got good lighting too.  The only challenge was trying to paint all the color I see in the white.  Well, for now, keep painting.  I will get back to you soon.  Shalom

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.