Here's what I wrote:
The "Art of the Portrait" conference is always one of the biggest highlights of my year, and I look forward to the next one almost immediately as soon as the previous one is over! The finest artists all gather together for a weekend of learning from and fellowshipping with one another, and I've found that even the most famous of portrait artists are kind, generous, and approachable. They're some of the nicest people you'll ever meet.
For the sake of many of you who were unable to make it to the event this year (it was held in Atlanta from April 28-May 1), I've decided to type up my notes from some of the lectures and demos that took place over the course of the weekend. Hopefully they will make sense to you and perhaps even help you in some area of your work, as they have for me (though to be honest, I'm still just trying to process all the information...).
Thursday night was the"Face-Off" competition, in which 15 leading artists painted for three hours from several different models, and the rest of us milled around the room to watch their progress. It's an incredible thing to be able to see so many amazing artists working in their own particular style and have them all come out in the end with a unique masterpiece. After they were finished with their paintings, the conference attendees were given the chance to vote for their favorite, and the winner Anthony Ryder did a solo demo the next day. I have an entire album of pictures from the conference, including pictures of the finished demos, on Flickr. You can view them in the slideshow below.
Here are some of my notes from the demos. Please note that these are the views as expressed by the artists giving the demonstrations, and not necessarily my own. There was a great variety of styles and methods represented by the artists in attendance, and it truly made for a wonderful educational experience.
Friday, April 29 - David Leffel’s demo:
Leffel did a self-portrait from a mirror.
"There are two kinds of edges: (1) dynamic edges, and (2) structural edges." Dynamic edges are the “eye candy” , e.g. Zorn or Sargent. Incorporate lost and found via squinting, and exhibit a striking visual quality. For example, dark, hard edges against a light background. Structural edges go back to the Old Masters – edges become part of the form and structure of the painting. “Half tones don’t exist except as a painting problem…What is the value / temperature of a half-tone? It’s nothing you can extrapolate on. But edges do exist in nature.” Light hits a plane and travels as far as the place facing the light goes, and as the form turns away from the light, there will be a soft edge. So you’re not getting a half-tone – you’re getting a soft edge which eventually turns into a shadow. So nature has soft and hard edges. Edges naturally turn in sequence from hard to soft – it’s an abstract sequence. Color, like edges, alternate from warm to cool. So if you have a warm plane, next will be a cool plane. This is true regardless of subject matter.
There are painters and there are renderers. In painting – instead of seeing form in a circular fashion, you see the world flatter, in planes, like sculpting. Rendering – using the wrist and brush, and doing a lot of blending. Leffel considers his style “abstract realism,” and he is a painter as opposed to a renderer. When starting, the most important thing to consider is size and placement. The more empty space you have, the more important the filled space becomes. Start with a gesture drawing so you immediately know the design of the whole thing. Endings are abrupt, and continuations are soft. So even if you’re some distance from the model, you should know what to do.
Edges also control color and value. As you soften an edge, that area loses its impact, so it becomes an aesthetic rather than technical problem. The more impact you want an area to have, the quicker the turn. The less impact, the softer the edge. Put down what you consider pertinent to the final painting. Learn to put down as quickly as possible what is significant. Know already where your edges and planes are, “and then all you have to do is finish the painting” (grin)
Work from big to little.
Background is very important. When you’re painting it, it is an integral part – it’s part of the “air” of the painting. Consider the color and value of it. It’s the local color and the color of the air between the subject and the background – as though you’re doing a landscape. A finished painting is a relationship of all the elements in the proper order. If you want something to go back in space, you lighten it, like a landscape. Learn to understand the abstract nature of painting. Just add information to your original idea (the gesture drawing). Build on the idea. “Try to only put down good brush strokes. Don’t waste time putting down bad marks.” A good brush sroke is descriptive of either structure or form. Structure goes across and form goes along. Zorn and Sargent, for example, preferred painting along form because the long brush strokes were more virtuosic. Just the change of direction of brush srokes gives you a totally different emotional impact or feeling in a painting. Part of it is intuitive or psychological, but part of it is conscious decision-making.
Highlights are anchors in the sense that they’re in the extreme. You have to know exactly where they go, so the painting should be “finished” before you put them down. A corner is where a plane changes direction.
Cleaning the brush is an unnecessary interruption while you’re painting. The solvent changes the consistency of the paint. Just get to know your brushes, and wipe them as you work, but save the solvents for when you’re finished.
You know a painting is finished, very simply, when you run out of energy. As long as you can see something to do in a painting, you have energy. Monitor yourself and your energy level, or else your painting will go downhill. If your painting is losing energy, either stop or work on a new passage or new painting. This will refresh you enough to go back to your original spot and find things that need work.
Here's the finished demo:
If you've ever met Bart Lindstrom or heard him speak, you'll probably agree with me in saying he's one of the funniest portrait artists in the business. There's nothing better than having a sense of humor about this profession, especially when times get hard. While Bart is great for a laugh, I have to say that he is an amazing professional who takes his work very seriously.
Here he is at the Face-Off demo from Thursday night:
And the finished painting:
Bart's Friday afternoon talk was about "Creating Timeless Compositions." Here are some of my notes from this lecture:
- Composition is the foundation of your painting. We get impatient sometimes and just want to start throwing on paint. Just as it’s smart to carefully think through your plans when designing a house, so you should carefully compose your painting.
- A good composition is open to debate, but here are some general guidelines:
(1) Dividing the canvas in thirds and making one of the connection points your focal point location.
(2) Never put an important element at these points (see below).
- Pay attention! Orchestrate the composition.
- USE THUMBNAIL SKETCHES. Do lots, and make them small (postage stamp size). You should only see the lights and darks.
- ABSTRACT VALUE PATTERNS are what the image would look like if you broke it down into its most basic shapes and values. For example, Sargent's painting of the Windham Sisters, has an abstract value pattern of almost two squarish shapes: a dark square on top of a light square.
- Next step from the thumbnail sketch is a color study, no bigger than 4x6.
- When you put down a brush stroke, it must be right in 5 ways: it must be the right shape, be in the right place, be the right color, the right value, and have the right edges. What are we doing here? We are trying to see the end painting at the beginning. Always ask, “What is the abstract value pattern?
- The color study should be FAST. Use three primaries and three secondaries. 10-15 minutes. If you’re fast and relying on intuition, you’ll be using the right side of your brain and not being too picky / analytical.
- When it’s raw canvas, you’re painting, when it’s paint on paint, you’re blending.
- To determine a correct value, mix your color-value, brush some of it on a 3x5 card and hold it up to our subject and make sure it’s just right.
- Orchestrate your composition with value and then color. The goal is to get something you are excited about.
- Paint from a well of knowledge and decisions you’ve already made.
- Get busy and have more fun!
- Don’t take shortcuts. Put your painting at the very top of your priority list.
- Look at the abstract value patterns of other great artists – it’s okay to borrow these.
- Lack of attention / focus causes you to lose your best brushstrokes... those little gems that you may never get back if you're not careful to preserve them!
- Make a vision book of paintings you want to do. Paint like Roger Federer hits the tennis ball – with all his might and with the greatest of accuracy.
One of my favorite moments of the weekend with the Portrait Society of America was when Michael Shane Neal painted his mentor and long-time friend, Everett Raymond Kinstler. To give you a little background: Kinstler is well-known as a painter of presidents and movie stars, with a bravado of brushwork that could rival Sargent. He estimated that he painted nearly 2000 portraits in his lifetime, an acheivement few artists will ever be able to match. His student, Michael Shane Neal, has an extensive resume of official portraits as well, including Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Conner. But it wasn't their experience that held the audience's rapt attention - it was the relationship they have and the humorous conversation that ensued during the 2-hour demo. Kinstler never held still or stopped talking, but I found his comments to be wonderfully insightful. And the stories - well, I could listen to him talk all day!
Some of my notes on things the two mentioned:
First of all, Kinstler, who was one of the judges in the International Portrait Competition this year, divulged exactly what he looks for in a great work of art: Imagination, feeling, and the ability to communicate. I think I'm going to write these down in permanent marker on my mirror!
Second, Michael Shane Neal had some important points as he worked:
- When adjusting your painting, the key is not so much re-painting, but re-stating. Make it stronger than it was before.
- Don’t take your eye off any part of the canvas as you work, because everything relates.
- Someone asked what he does to varnish a painting when there's a delivery deadline and the work hasn't had a full six months to dry. The solution? Gamvar varnish. The only downside is that it is high-gloss (personally I have yet to find a matte retouch varnish!). Otherwise, if you have the luxury of waiting till the painting is completely dry, Neal's varnish of choice is equal parts of Dammar varnish, matte varnish and English distilled turpentine.
On Saturday night of the conference, I attended the awards banquet for the international competition winners. The quality of work this year was absolutely impressive! If you wish to see all of the finalists, I recommend checking out "Underpaintings," a blog by artist and conference attendee, Matthew Innis. I was both very happy for the award winners, and a little overwhelmed at how good they are! It's a little disheartening, realizing you have such a long way to go! But, the challenge is good, and just what I need to get back into the studio and work hard. I was especially impressed by the work of young artists Teresa Oaxaca (for her painting, "Father Time"), and the grand prize winner, Jesus Villareal, for his self-portrait, "The Studio."
Here is our little group from the Dallas area (from left: Judy Lind, Anna Rose Bain, Becky Pearson, Carol Devereaux, Michael Mentler):
It sure is nice to get out of those painting clothes and dress up once in a while! :-)
And here are the last of my notes from the Portrait Society. This last segment was a panel of professional portrait artists giving us tips on “Steps to Professionalism." So here you go:
Gordon Wetmore:
One of the first steps to professionalism is the sale of your work.
- Make a portfolio of excellent photos, including a biography and price list. Include only your best work.
- Make a client list of at least 20 prospecta, and make appointments to speak with them about a portrait.
- Paint demos for prospective clients
- Paint your best sample portraits - don't show anything you're not proud of.
- Build a solid reputation by being timely in your completion and delivery.
- Set up an article about you and your work with the local paper
- Develop a thoroughly professional attitude. Take on the attitude that the customer is always right. Be sensitive and take clues from your clients, even if it means you have to start the painting all over.
- Participate in charity auctions.
- Work with agents, such as Portraits, Inc.
- Organize get-togethers or luncheons with live demos
- Mentor others; teach / have workshops
- Give greeting cards, prints, and other gifts to your clients as a thank you; keep in touch with your clients; send them notes and Christmas or birthday cards
- Your best prospect is always your previous client
Jennifer Welty – on Competitions
- Don’t let competitions define you as an artist
- Don’t allow rejection to get you down – just keep painting.
- Learn to paint well, and paint what you love.
- Photograph your work well
- Be willing to pay your dues
- Set aside a yearly allowance for entering competitions, and enter a lot of them
- Hang with professionals and watch what they do
Rich Nelson – on Building Good Relationships
The client is as nervous and uncomfortable as you are, if not more. Find out if they’ve bought a portrait before – if not, make it stress-free for both of you. Clients can tell if you’re nervous, but on the flip side, if you are confident, they’ll also feed off of that.
- It’s not always stress-free. Use good common manners, especially when things get ugly.
- Good communication and good listening. Pick up on their signals. A lot of people are not comfortable telling an artist there’s something wrong
- If you’ve taken good photos, send them along with the client.
- Pick up the dinner tab.
- As far as working with agents, remember that they’re clients too. Try and make them look good. Include them in every aspect so that you don’t blindside them. Copy them on emails. Be ready for the unexpected or things you might not have originally thought of.
- If you’re doing everything right, we can all get through this together. They’re willing to put up with our weirdness as long as we can connect on some level.
- Finally, deliver amazing work.
Bart Lindstrom – on Organization and Time Management
- Have a place for everything, and have everything in its place. This is especially true of your studio.
- Set your studio up so you can sit down and paint quickly. It should embrace you. Same is true for your business side of lie.
- Try to write one thank-you note per day.
- Record your mileage. Keep a notebook in your car. Write on your receipts – note as to why it’s a business expense.
- Try to have some time during the day to clear your desk and re-organize.
- Have a to-do list. Prioritize, and pick the hardest one to do first.
Patricia Watwood – on Goals
- Most artists only produce about 500 paintings in their lifetime. How many great paintings are you capable of making in a year, or in your lifetime?
- What is this painting you’re working on right now and how does it fit in your lifetime of work? MAKE IT COUNT.
- Think about what it is that defines your work. No matter what your subject matter, there’s a particular quality about your work that is uniquely yours. Learn to recognize That quality and how to make it shine. Show it off to its best advantage.
- What is it that really gets you up every morning and keeps you going? You’ve got to have something bigger than you to live for. We all have to deal with rejection and uncertainty, so you have to dig deep and find a source of strength and inspiration.
- Inspiration doesn’t come by repeating what you did before. By nature, it’s always original. Think about continuing to grow and challenge yourself. People know inspiration when they see it.
- Think long-term – you have to keep growing. The very best artists are never too proud to study and go back to the basics.
- Develop good relationships. The art world is a mystery, so you’ve gotta trust in good people. Be genuine. Always put people first.
Judy Carducci – on Volunteering and Advancing our Discipline
- Why teach? Those of us who are in traditional art lost several generations worth of instruction during the 20th century, and we are working to get it back.
- Don’t teach until you can learn not to trample on your students’ vision. Let them discover their own style and taste. When you solve your own problems, then your work takes off.
- Judy started by giving a local workshop and doing a pastel self-portrait. Someone there asked her if she’d like to teach in France. One thing led to another.
- Mentoring is less teaching skills than it is encouraging and helping someone through their ongoing career. Develops out of a friendship and teaching relationship. Can be a lifetime thing as long as both people want it.
My own thoughts on this (in case anyone cares about my two cents!):
Gallery work is “safe” and “predictable.” Competition pieces should be more creative and take more risks. I try to set aside time from my commissions for 2-3 competition pieces per year. Ultimately, those will end up being my best and most creative work.
