Self Portrait

   Here's the progression shots for this recent self portrait. I've done many over the years, and its become a great way for me to mark my time, to try and struggle to capture a likeness, to create a volumetric form with paint and soul...The first session was spent blocking in the tones and shapes with a palette knife. The second and third session were spent refining the light and modeling of form. I wanted to mantain the freshness and immediacy of the experience so I tried to paint fast and edit well.

stage 1: 14" x 12"

stage 2

Finished stage

   There's something very comforting, but very frightening, about the self-portrait. Comforting, in the sense that its an image and a form that you know the most...you feel the pose as you're painting it. Frightening, because you can slip into that area where you see yourself outside of yourself; yourself as a thing in the world. Each session was probably about 2 hours...maybe 6 hours total. My next portrait is of my wife, Faith, which I'm excited to start. My daughter's painting is about half done, so I'll probably write a post about them soon...