Personal quotations:
“i am definitely in Picasso inspiration, again. canvases being turned upside down, 90 degrees, strange wonderful art things. Here is (at first) a landscape of white outline with five random green rings i turned into a portrait to figure out some ideas.”
Updated: Approximately six definitive paint workings including three infinitesimal concluding drafts to perfect the visual.
I have strived immensely in my efforts, realising the portrait subject and timeframe during the very latter stages of its production. For me, interpreting my own work, the greatest clue came from the exclamation in the deep blue.
‘Ospicas’ is an anagram, a term of endearment and appreciation by me. I have utilised anagrams earlier with reference to specific artists and/or their works.
Making a portrait from a landscape-oriented abstract has made me very happy with this piece.
Here is the second draft, the first draft involved priming the heavy gesso with the cadmium-red ground you see:
At the time of making the second draft I made structural lines using a tube of titanium white. Additional brush painting in ultramarine/cerulean blue, sand (paint colour around the eyes), gold, copper, silver and burnt umber followed with careful, neat application..
.. only once I had turned the canvas into portrait orientation!
At first you see I envisaged a cute creature, being perfectly honest with you as a dear Reader.
With the yellow I wanted natural creativity to compose a face, enjoying visible brush lines, the interplay between red and yellow. Cloth fabric in use to allow the red ground to shine through, like the Sun.
The wild application of brushed yellow caused the necessity for much tidying work over the white tube lines. Wonderfully this improved the titanium textures. You can view the final draft with the second draft by clicking each image to see these textural differences. I retained smoothness at the centre for contrast.
Burnt umber is synonymous with academic underpainting. It was at this latter draft working I understood the portrait person, including the timeframe in their life.
A person with an intense, insatiable hunger for art.
I would greatly love anyone interested to make a version of this portrait with colours of your own choosing or in emulation of those in the painting.
Please enjoy.
