The Artist Self-Portrait Part 3 She Speaks

Mapping out the shapes, shadows and highlights.

My artist self-portrait has come a long way since the first photo I posted of it.



Working it....

This is a challenging exercise for me as I am not a portrait painter. Seeing, mixing flesh tones, being able to transfer what I see to the canvas, not liking what I see and making decisions along the way to include or exclude what I see. This is all not to even mention the internal challenges (along with realizations and insights) that are arising as a result of painting myself.

I moved the painting operation out of the
bathroom and set up a studio in the corner
of my living room. This changed the
light source drastically.

In my last painting session, a friend, and Queen of Portrait Painting, Carol Young, suggested a flesh mix. Well.... that mix worked magic! The painting came alive when I added a yellow glaze. She loves yellow and says it feels like the sun just kissed her. And... she kept on talking.



Getting there with my new flesh mixture.

During this last session, she went to giddy at coming alive, to not speaking to me, to becoming totally disgusted, to copping an attitude when I left her lips looking not-so-great. LOL! She's a trip. I can't wait until our next session.

Her current state... working on the lips...
now she has attitude!

Sir Kitty, looking for black paint to do
his own self-portrait, or paint himself
into mine!

I went to Tucson over the weekend. When I came back, Sir Kitty was at the chair, looking over the paints on the shelf. I think he might have been looking for black... to paint himself into the picture!

Mary Rush Gravelle, Artist

Until Next Week

• Create art

• Appreciate art

• Buy art


I would love to hear your comments on this article, please leave one if you feel inspired.


About the author: Mary Rush Gravelle is an artist who resides in Cottonwood, Arizona with her beloved cat, Sir Kitty. Find her work and daily comments on her facebook page. Her art can be seen on her website, maryfineart.com. She can be contacted via email at: mary@maryfineart.com.

Most Visited Print This Week

The most visited print this week to my online print store was Flower Light. It is actually a photograph of a detail of a larger painting, Blossoming, which is not available as a print yet.

Flower Light would look fabulous in the acrylic print option, in the largest size, 40 x 30 inches. Imagine it in a room where you want a contemporary look. Or, if you like a framed print, consider framing in a white frame with a thin white mat of 1-1.5 inches so you can see more of the image.


Sorry, I was unable to upload a photo for this post from the computer I am using at this time. Click on the above links to see it. The full painting, Blossoming is pictured behind me in the below photo.

Mary Rush Gravelle, Artist

Until Next Week

• Create art

• Appreciate art

• Buy art


I would love to hear your comments on this article, please leave one if you feel inspired.


About the author: Mary Rush Gravelle is an artist who resides in Cottonwood, Arizona with her beloved cat, Sir Kitty. Find her work and daily comments on her facebook page. Her art can be seen on her website, maryfineart.com. She can be contacted via email at: mary@maryfineart.com.

Sedona Local Artists Coop

While visiting the Village of Oak Creek in Sedona, Arizona yesterday, I happened upon what I think is a true artists' coop, run and owned by artists. Village Gallery of Local Artists is located at 6500 Highway 179, Sedona (in the Village of Oak Creek).

Landscape Photographer, Grazina Wade, was working her shift when I opened the sliding glass doors and walked in. A conversation began, and I guess it was apparent that I was an artist since she asked me if I was one. "Well, yes...", I said. She then proceeded to take time to explain this particular artists' coop and the advantages of joining. She talked about the wonderful artists that exhibit their work there, showing me their work during our chat.

Then she took me to her wall of amazing photographs. The one of Bryce Canyon in Utah is stunning. She talked about the glow at a particular time in the afternoon that she just loves to capture as she pointed to the tips of the rocks in the photograph. Her Artist Statement on the coop website, is inspiring and well-written.

Mary Rush Gravelle, Artist

If you visit Sedona, seek out this artists' coop and buy local art. You will have the satisfaction of making the artists happy while aiding their lives and the life of the coop. Your support affords the artist to keep on doing what they do. It also allows them to have a beautiful place to exhibit it so you can find it.

Until Next Week
• Create art
• Appreciate art
• Buy art

I would love to hear your comments on this article, please leave one if you feel inspired.

About the author: Mary Rush Gravelle is an artist who resides in Cottonwood, Arizona with her beloved cat, Sir Kitty. Find her work and daily comments on her facebook page. Her art can be seen on her website, maryfineart.com. She can be contacted via email at: mary@maryfineart.com.

The Artist Self-Portrait Continued

http://www.ibiblio.org/wm/paint/auth/gogh/self/

"Self-portrait - A portrait an artist makes using himself or herself as its subject, typically drawn or painted from a reflection in a mirror." 1

While researching the subject of the artist self-portrait to discover more about the subject as I challenge myself to do one, I came across a fascinating website (see citation 2 below). The author of the website is unknown, but goes into more detail on the subject than what I really want to do in this blog article. This article / website is an in depth study of the artist self-portrait and why they do it.

Referring to artists such as Rembrandt, van Gogh, Dürer, Gustave Courbet, Frida Kahlo, among others, it uncovers the artists' possible motivations for painting oneself. Here is a paragraph that sums it up:

"All of these artists gazed into their mirrors and attempted to grasp their identities. They sought to portray their image, whether it showed a clear representation of their features, a walk through their childhood or an outpouring of emotions. Some self-portraits show only what the artist wants us to see, some chronicle the history of the artist, others reveal personal secrets and a sense of isolation. Whichever method is employed each artist took a long literal and figurative look at him/herself. Each portrait is an exploration of the self."

And...

"For all artists, the self-portrait is an exploration, an opportunity to see beyond the image in the mirror and begin to search into the soul."

Self-Portrait with Animal Hat. My first
self-portrait in drawing class.

I love this last statement. I think that is true for me. The self-portraits that we were required to draw in college revealed aspects to myself that were not available on the surface of what I saw myself to be. Rather, they portrayed a deeper sense, a sadness, a more serious aspect, that I never show to people. However, at that particular time, it had only been six weeks since my dear baby brother had died suddenly in a boating accident. I was sad. Possibly, the sadness showed to others as well. I'm not sure. But, the self-portraits I drew at that time made my sadness visible to me.

I wonder what this current self-portrait will show? What will I discover in my innermost being while painting this excursion from looking in the mirror? Will I allow a realistic portrayal? Will I edit parts of self that I don't want to show? Will I do an abstraction? Stay tuned...

Citations:

1. Quote

2. Article/website -- http://userpages.umbc.edu/~ivy/selfportrait/intro.html 3. My first self-portrait -- read more at http://wisdompainting.com/inspirational_images_22_Mary_Gravelle_Self_Portrait.htm