A happy profile

I know it's been a while, but here you go.
I keep a folder on my computer of photos that for one reason or another I think would be good starting points for these loose paintings. Case in point, here's one that I snagged from Molly Crabapple's Dr. Sketchy site.
You would think that with all of the crazy sh#t going on there ;) that something else would jump out at me, but I really liked this profile shot of Molly.
This is also a good example of how far I stray from my reference material too. I just focus on the aspects that draw me in and ignore the rest.

Another gothy girl

In paintings, I like it when the hair and clothes kind of merge into one shape I think that it makes the skin pop even more. I wanted to keep the emphasis on the pale skin here so I didn't put much detail anywhere else. This one was painted on a piece of cardboard from the back of a drawing pad which is a really nice surface to work on.

The furry black hat

This time of year in New England we are all bundled up so I guess that was the motivation for this one, plus I like girls in hats! I was drawn to the way the hat covered her eyes in particular, you don't see that very often in portraits.

Victorian beauty

While I may be comfortable living in the "modern" world, I can't deny that there is something very appealing about the slower pace of the 19th century that tugs at my soul...especially the girls in fancy dresses and the art!

goth girl

I admit it, I like to see people dressed up, whether it's in nice clothes or some kind of crazy outfit. I've always admired punks and goths for the pure dedication to their lifestyle...man, no one else in the world shouts out,"THIS IS WHO I AM!" better than they do.

Pink girl's progress

Here are some progress pics I took while I was working on the pink girl. I told you that you would be horrified! One thing about acrylic paints is that you can paint on just about anything, and I guess I proved it this time. This one was painted on an old book cover. The cover was falling off and I was going to chuck the book when it struck me that hardcover book covers are basically canvas boards but with a finer weave than most commercially made canvas boards. The finer weave worked out well at this small scale and it was actually a nice surface to work on...crazy I know.

Pink girl

Well this was a change of pace. First of all because I don't usually paint kids and secondly because I painted it on a piece of canvas board (well kind of). I took some in prog photos that I'll post soon and you'll be horrified to find out what I painted this one on ;)