Sleeping on the Job

Faces is my theme this week, but there is more to enjoy than the face in this portrait of a dozing model.  Last week I featured this model in the same pose but in a painting of the entire body.  Since last week’s version was done with a palette knife, with very thick applications of paint, I couldn’t do much to improve on it this week.  Oh, it was certainly not a perfect painting, whatever that might be, but it was fixed and immovable because of the impasto effect.

I am leading off with this example of a face because it’s my pride and joy for this week.  I love the varied but believable skin tones, and I think I am getting the values right.  I feel as if this might be another “breakthrough” painting for me.

Peculiar, however, is the pleasure I take in the recliner.  Again.  For a painter who eschews the still life as a painting subject, I get an awful big kick out of portraying the inanimate objects that accompany my figures.   More about that  below.

Girl in Green

You should recognize my model here–she is also the sleeping beauty above, as well as the subject of many portraits in my checkered past of portraits.

This one is a portrait from my Thursday night class with Cameron Bennett.  It represents two sessions of three hours each.  Instead of a big brown recliner distracting me, here it is the hat (especially the satin bow), the earring, and the soft jersey blouse.  I am proud of the hat and the earring, but disappointed in the blouse.   One of my classmates, Bill Turner, turned out a beautifully and subtly draped blouse that I envied.  But Cameron gave me the fisheye when I exclaimed how wonderful it was, and pointed out the superior quality of the arm Bill had painted.  I guess it all depends on where you are coming from.  Bill paints trucks and horses, so a delicately formed human arm is the bigger deal for him.  Here is a link to view some of his trucks and horses, painted fantastically well.

Here is of my favorite models, from the Granucci workshop on figure drawing–but this drawing turned out to be about her face.  The likeness is good, but more than that, she looks as beautiful as she can look.  If I could accomplish this kind of result every time out, I could make some money as a portraitist.

I have two more faces to show you.  Over the weekend, at the popup exhibit at the White Birch Brewing company in Hooksett, I conceived the idea of offering free 15-minute portraits, as practice for me and to make the time not totally wasted (I took in about 20 paintings to display but put prices on none of them because I did not foresee encountering a serious art collector, i.e., one willing to pay hundreds of dollars for an original oil).  A handsome young fellow artist, Clinton Swank, sat down for his portrait. The he drew a portrait of me.  Then I did another one of him, trying to capture the “sultry” in his look.  Then he worked more on his portrait of me.

Clint, No. 1--a good likeness

Clint's portrait of me

I like it.  Fierce, but not mad.

Clint, No. 2, not as good a likeness, but sultry, right?

I had prepared a selection of other faces (more TV heads drawn while watching TV), but that would be too much of a good thing, so I will save them for a future post.

Last minute note:  another of my 15-minute portraits has been posted on Linda Feinberg’s blog, link here.  The portrait is of Linda’s husband, Joe Smiga, noted local author.

Aline Lotter is currently exhibiting:

at the Gallery at 100 Market Street in Portsmouth; at the Sage Gallery in Manchester; at the Hatfield Gallery in Manchester; at the Bartlett Inn in Bartlett; at the Red Jacket Inn in North Conway; and at her studio by appointment.

Link to website: www.paintingsbyaline.com