J.W.Waterhouse Sketchbooks

"The Victoria and Albert Tearoom"
24x18" via palette knife
By Johanna Spinks
For purchase
here

The block-in painted from life with that knife

Slowing working through

The background begins

Visiting the sketchbooks of J.W.Waterhouse within the vaults of The Victoria and Albert Museum. Wow!

I have long enjoyed a good scone, thick clotted cream and a nice cuppa especially in lovely British tearooms. I found myself once again in the tearoom of The Victoria and Albert Museum with its' beautiful Pre-Raphaelite windows that leave you breathless with wonder and so enjoying the moment.

I was also lucky enough to visit four of J.W. Waterhouse sketchbooks in this Musuem's collection which was a remarkable experience. Yes, I actually got to leaf through them with my bare hands. What an incredible artist J.W. Waterhouse was. I don't think anyone has yet come close to what he did with his brush and imagination.

So, all of this came together in my painting inspired by the tearoom and those sketchbooks. It was started from life painting the lovely model Amina in my teaching class and taken further during the days that followed. The windows are downplayed which I apologize for but sometimes you have to edit.

I hope you like.

The Palette Knife Portrait Continues

Fresh back into the studio from my trip abroad I am anxious to get going again with my palette knife portrait work preparing for a show.  They won't all make it. You have to paint a lot of portraits from life to get a few good ones it seems to me. The palette knife is more hit and miss than painting with the regular brush.

This one of Julie is the first one painted from life on my return thinking somewhat of the beautiful J.W. Waterhouse paintings and sketchbooks I was lucky enough to see in the U.K. I tried to keep some areas to almost the bare canvas while working up  other areas much thicker.

Today I start a portrait of a vineyard owner with that palette knife. Come back to see the work in progress?

"Julie"
12 x 9"
Oil on linen panel via palette knife
Johanna Spinks

What am I DRAWN TO?...365 Days of Drawing

I am drawn to drawing beautiful exotic women, young sweet children and anything somewhat poignant, romantic or sparkling. I can't help myself and I don't fight it anymore. Call me sentimental, I don't care.

I once saw a female artist post on Facebook that doing this kind of art was TOO OBVIOUS and taking advantage of women...so she then painted some really gritty faces to make her point. They were very good too. Was this higher art tho' as I think this was her point? Isn't this taking advantage of ugly people? Who gets to decide this?

Hmm...all those Victorian painters, J.W. Waterhouse, Alma Tadema, Burnes Jones, John Millais and Lord Frederick Leighton to name a few, must have been not only rolling in their graves but their eyes too. They loved to paint a pretty girl or two in transparent airless shifts. Gratuitous? I think not.

I post my drawing for yesterday. It has to be said a craggy old man has it's appeal too especially with an upcoming Santa Claus demo December 3rd that I am now preparing for. Renting costumes, sketching and finding just the right face...(actually I found him this week- thanks Beglar!).

Ssssshhhh.. Santa Claus is real. And painting "pretty" ok.

Marla the Magnificent Muse...

It has been a while since I have had the absolute privilege to paint Marla. We worked together a few years back on a series of paintings, and were featured together in ART TALK magazine with both the model and the artist being asked  "what makes an art muse?" 

It is an elusive thing and I was reminded of this once again when Marla sat for my teaching class at LAAFA  this week. I was excited to see her and paint her again. She always comes prepared looking amazing. Really makes the effort. And one just can't wait to get going. We had decided ahead to do a 50's movie start set-up. She couldn't be more perfect for that old Hollywood glamor look. Think retro Jayne Mansfield but with fiery red aubergine/eggplant hair.

However, I never know what I am going to get when I paint Marla.  I also never quite paint her the way I see it in my head.  I wanted to do a great piece but it missed the mark I fear. My husband said my head sketch looked like I had thrown myself at the canvas. Hmm.. A student said it was very bold and daring. What does that mean translated?  I know the sketch had energy to say the least. And I know I enjoyed painting Marla despite around the teaching situation which presents certain challenges.

And then I think of my favorite master artists who repainted the same face time and time again, J.W. Waterhouse for instance had a "look" that he preferred in his paintings and often used the same model again and again, they didn't always have a consistency. Although Waterhouse came pretty close! Harrison Fisher is another artist I really admire whose women had a certain look and was know to rely on some model favorites. He drew like a dream and did most of his work in watercolor. 

The thing is in my head I see Marla, who by the way is a very intelligent and talented jewelry design artist of quite some renown, as a delicate thing. But her exterior is super sexy (think Vargas pinup girl) and colorful, almost larger than life but in a GREAT way with terrific style, a beautiful blue tattoo over most of her back, and tons of VA-VOOM in the best possible way. That undeniable intelligence underneath it  and a slight vulnerability perhaps too. It is a powerful mix.

I have decided I may do another painting using my head study for reference to see if I can quiet it down. Maybe Marla should not be quietened down at all. Maybe one should just keep on painting her.  Ponder, ponder...

Hmmm...the artist's muse returns.