Conveying character

I would like to convey joy/happiness.

I have chosen an image I have taken of someone mid-laughter, this image is rich in character, you are able to see a huge smile and the face is full of the creases you experience when you are laughing.

I started preparations for this painting by creating a line sketch and then a tonal sketch. I chose to crop the image down to just the face and neck. My thinking is that this will help the viewer explore the emotion behind the painting.

• 

• 

• 

The painting – 30x40cm canvas

I started by creating a buff titanium outline, marking the main outline and notable features.

Next, I began to fill in my outline with a mix of colours. I created a pallette of burnt sienne, raw sienna, burnt umber, yellow ochre, vermillion and mars black. I painted the face, neck and my models hair filling in my shape while following the tones on the face.

• 

• 

Now, I wanted to build up the colours and begin to define the features. I painted the lips using reds mixed with some skin tones, began to fill in the defining features and lines and filled in the hair area.

• 

• 

• 

Using a mars black with a slow dry medium, I created some lines to fix the face shape. I used buff titanium with the brown mix on the hair which changed the shape of the face and made it look more realistic.

• 

I used loose brushstrokes to prepare for my next layer of adding colouring to the skin. I also carefully painted the white shades of the models teeth. I painted the eye details and continued adding layers to the skin.

• 

• 

I keep assessing the image and trying to build up the depth, detail and accurate tones but I’m finding it hard. I felt I would move forward trying to gain more likeness. I added pink to the gums and the darkness surrounding the teeth which helps bring out more character in the painting. I focused then on the details such as the eyes, beauty marks, details on the collar and some colour in the background. I added light to areas on the skin tone and felt fairly defeated by this piece.

• 

• 

• 

• 

Thoughts on this piece

I feel as though you are able to see the character that I wanted to give of which is clearly a visible happiness. The way this image has captured my model defines this image as naturally laughter is infectious. My skill for tone and colour needs a lot more work and I would like to practice mixing some darker skin tones and more faces with prominent features such as wrinkles, moles and freckles.