Got The Blues?

Shades of complimentary orange and blues...I met Chris as he was leaving a wine bar wearing this really great hat. I knew he had a really great face to paint so I approached him to sit for me. I wasn't disappointed. A few weeks later he came into my studio for two sittings, and this is what we created -probably my favorite large portrait so far this year. 36x36" via my palette knife.

Thank you Chris.

"Steel"
By Johanna Spinks
36x36"
Oil on canvas, via palette knife
For purchase at Saachi Online
gohere

In situ...what a beautiful wall.

Painted in two life sittings. Thank you Chris!  What a great young man.

In progress...end of first sitting

I Love My "Job"!

Beautiful sitters, inside and out, give me such joy to paint.

Thank you to lovely Paula. I enjoyed working with you on this commission so much,  painting beautiful you and  the beautiful Malibu light. Did I mention beautiful enough?

Recent Commission
By Johanna Spinks

Did I mention I love my job? The portrait presentation. 

Neon Lit Palette Knife Journey?

My journey this year painting large portraits  via a palette knife continues. Here is my most recently completed one with the lovely Amina done in two sittings of about three hours.

I am surprised - and challenged - by what is coming off the canvas. It is so different from anything that has come before in my creative journey  but I also know I must continue to see what develops. I also know I have been leading up to these neon large format palette knives for a while.  

I started painting portraits with a knife about four years ago in my non-commissioned work. I started exploring the neon color, lots of drips, about two years ago in my back grounds. 

My goal is to make these large one look really abstract closeup. Just dabs of unconnected paint. But view from a distance, they read as a whole. 

Hope you enjoy!

"The Coral Earring"
36x36"
By Johanna Spinks
Oil on canvas via palette knife
Available for purchase at Saachi Online
Go here

Two life sittings. Here is the then end of the first one. I'm happy if I have got the eyes done as to me they are the most important part of the painting. 

In situ, pretty as a picture

Close-up, trying to leave as much of that original toned pink as I can, laying cool colors over the top. Mostly. 

Coral earring.

Painting a Public Demo Life Sketch - Step By Step

Honored to be invited by Les Boudoirs Boutique, a luxury lingerie store in California, to do a Mother's Day strawberries and champagne event, doing a painting demo of the lovely Amina in a gorgeous corset.

Some good friends in the audience took some step-by-step pictures which I thought I would share to show my demo process. So here they are!

Thank you to Les Boudoirs Boutique, my lovely model Amina, and all who attended.

http://lesboudoirs.com

"Les Boudoirs to Degas"
SOLD
18x24"
By Johanna Spinks

It always feels good at the end.

The Pose: Who can go wrong painting the beautiful Amina in a lovely Les Boudoirs corset?

The start. Quick charcoal lines to loosen up on a toned board just like Degas and Lautrec used. 

Gestural drawing to capture the movement of the figure. Trying to say a loose as string.

Off to paint we go, blocking in light and dark side of forms. Thinking solid forms!

Working up the elements, knowing  I have things pretty much in place now, and the corset will be icing on the cake. Much easier to paint for me than the body and face. I know at this point the demo is going to be fine.

Blocking in features of face, keeping them loose and pushed back. One can't paint a fully developed  portrait and a figure in just three hours. Something has to give. In this case, the face is kept loose and sketchy through to the end. 

Close-up: Oh, what fun. I added some new drawing lines in to complete the sketchy feel.