I’ve been processing photos submitted for the Fall Portrait Marathon, wrapping up my big mystery commission (that ran over into Portrait Marathon time! :rolleyes: ), communicating with the winners, and sketching up the first Fall Portrait Marathon (hereinafter referred to as FPM) painting. Hailey-SketchDigital painting, ©Xan Blackburn 2011 I did a quicky ArtRage painting … Read More “Mystery portrait wraps up, and Marathon begins”
I’m getting some feedback that my first post about the marathon was maybe a bit confusing. Let’s see if I can be a little more clear. What: I will do ten 5″x 5″ portraits, acrylic on canvas, of ANY species for $80 +shipping Why: As a benefit for Creatures Comfort, a feral cat rescue program, which will receive $20 … Read More “Fall Portrait Marathon: the simpler version”
CocoWork in progress. Gouache on matboard© 2011 Xan Blackburn Quick note to clarify: I welcome ANY species for this marathon. Not just kitties!Cats! Feral cats, to be specific. We’ve all seen them, slinking or strutting, hunting, making kittens, eyes glowing on the side of the road, raiding garbage cans or sharing your outdoor cats’ meals. It’s … Read More “Fall Portrait Marathon: CATS”
I don’t even know what project to take up! Niccolo & MaeBellaWork in progress. Acrylic on panel. 16″ x 20″©Xan Blackburn 2011 I’ve got two paintings currently in process; Fluffy, and Niccolo and MaeBella (yikes! that’s colorful!) I got stalled out on N&M two whole years ago, when I ran out of technique, and my … Read More “Decisions! Decisions!”
SnipFest is this weekend, at which I am vending, and I had hoped to be able to bring at least a couple of new things to offer. I set Fluffy aside, and started going through my photos of my cats for inspiration. All 3 of my aging cats are rescues. I’m not sure of Meep’s … Read More “SnipFest: Quick! Make some art!”
I think I’m done. I know! I know! I say that, and then the next day, I fiddle around some more, and THEN I’m done. So, maybe I should just post this as an update. The penultimate Spring Portrait Marathon post. Well, let’s back up, and I’ll tell you more about how I got to … Read More “Portrait Marathon: Finale, stage two. Strider”
That’s quite a title, huh? Well, let’s get crackin’. As I said in my last post, this will be my last painting in the Spring Portrait Marathon. I’ve got a couple other projects I can’t put off anymore, so Strider gets to be the big bang at the end of the show. Here’s the reference … Read More “Portrait Marathon: Finale, stage one. Strider”
Nikki’s portrait is finished! Lisa’s Nikki (aka Ms Hotlips) Between the last update and this one, I concentrated on building up layers of detail, deepening the shadow areas with color, and basically making all the color zones complicated as in real life. The scans make the background colors look very different, and have washed … Read More “Portrait Marathon: Nikki is done!”
Getting there!! After the rough start, Nikki’s portrait languished a bit while I recovered from the trauma, and did some other work. She gazed back at me vaguely as I passed her throughout the day, patiently or not, she would not say. Yesterday finally turned out to be her day. The big graphics I had … Read More “Portrait Marathon: Nikki graduates from Rehab”
A terrible rainstorm has flooded out and destroyed a galgo rescue shelter in Spain. There’s an auction taking place today to help raise the emergency funds needed to save the 100 remaining dogs (some have died), and get them the basics of survival; food, shelter, medicines. So far in the auction, there is a wonderful … Read More “While I’m working on Nikki, This Important Message”
