Anatomy of a Portrait Demo...What Was I Thinking?

Demo's End, One Hour Twenty Minutes.

Glad I brushed my hair.

Focus, focus. Paint your training.

Get the big shapes in of light and shadow. Draw well!

Forget those cookies on the coffee table. Make use of the breaks! Time is short.

Engage with those beautiful blue eyes. Feel it.

Gratitude For The Journey, a lovely sitter, and my mentor Mr. Everett Raymond Kinstler! www.everettraymondkinstler.com

To paint a demo in an hour and twenty minutes with a sitter picked from the crowd that you have never met before, me talking all the way, answering the artist audience's questions, with lights, camera, action blaring, and a microphone that is playing up, what was I thinking?

Well, you tell me?

Thanks to my friends at The SFVAC for the gracious invite to show my approach. It was a fun evening.

Anatomy of a demo...365 Days of Drawing

Thanks to Joan, a student in my workshop this weekend for being such a great sitter for me. Total time of demo, one and a half hours. Thanks to Terry too for extra pix. In fact, thanks to all who made this weekend so stimulating. It was a privilege.

Look for my next workshop "Oil Painting - A Valued Approach" early Spring.

Here are some unsolicited testimonials from this weekend put on FACEBOOK today. Thank you so much!!!

I had a lot of fun at the workshop. Johanna is a generous, articulate teacher who shares all of her painting "secrets". She explained her steps of procedure, and circulated frequently to make sure everyone had a chance to get all their questions answered. I learned a LOT! :) C.J.

What a great workshop. My head is swimming with information. I have a lot of homework to do before the next workshop. I am eager to see where this information takes me. Johanna is so very patient and full of knowledge and energy. If you are looking for motivation, inspiration and knowledge... her workshops will get you there! Thank you so very much Johanna. And BTW- I noticed you paint much more than one sketch per day! Simply amazing! N.E.

Excellent workshop. Your patience and knowledge are the marks of a great teacher. Look forward to taking another...L.P.

PERFORMANCE ART?

I just wanted to say a thank you to my new friends at The San Fernando Valley Art Club who were just so darn charming toward me at my portrait demo for them last night.

I was amazed as the membership crowd just got bigger and bigger with over 80 artists filling the room to watch me paint my beautiful artist friend Diane.

I hope I did OK...nice things certainly were said  but maybe the coffee was spiked. Someone even said it was like John Singer Sargent was in the room. I wanted to kiss her. Everyone was incredibly warm and generous and I enjoyed judging the members' art competition. Some very fine work there. Obviously a thriving art group, some 65 years old.

To paint in public is not for the faint-hearted; over 80 pairs of artists' eyes watching you, random questions galore, a video camera recording your every word, and your image put up on a huge screen. Wish I had done my roots. You are really doing performance art or a "stunt" as Mr. Everett Raymond Kinstler often calls them and he should know. He can write the book on portrait demos. 

This demo was done in a total of one hour and 15 minutes with just one break.  18 x 24 Phew!

Here are some tips in case you do one:

Have a pee before you start

Don't drink caffeine just before...is that your hand shaking or the video?

Wear something that looks good from behind.

Draw, draw, draw ahead of time. No rusty nails...they come after! Hic!

Make friends in the audience before you start. Who wants a hostile audience?

Don't swear when you drop your brush. That pesky microphone.

Know your model ahead of time. Know what they will be wearing. No crazy kaftan surprises.

Give out LOTS of free stuff. People always want free stuff. I know I do.

Keep it simple stupid! Don't get clever.  Paint what you KNOW. 

Think what you would want to get from a demo. Endless stories told by the artist about him/herself OR endless tips that you can use in  your painting? Durrrr...

Have your cards and mailing list handy...that's what stunts are for.