Upcoming Workshop: Pastel Portraits with D.K. Richardson

Artist Spotlight: D.K. Richardson

D.K. Richardson of Austin, TX, is this month's Spotlight Artist. If you would like to be in the spotlight, please email Anna at annarosebain@gmail.com to submit your information.

Artist D.K. Richardson

Exciting News from D.K. Richardson:

D.K.'s pastel painting “Evening Prayer” won Best of Show for in the 2013 Austin Pastel Society’s Annual Member’s Only Exhibition. It also just placed as a finalist in the 2013 ARC Salon.

Upcoming Demo: 
D.K. Richardson will be doing a portrait demo for our next Meet-and-Greet on May 18, 2013 in Houston! Stay tuned for more details!

Upcoming Workshops:

    Pastel Portraits

    April 5^th and 6^th, 2013

      Jerry’s Artarama, Austin, TX

     $190  (Plus $30 for supplies)

"Evening Prayer" by D.K. Richardson

    Oil Portraits                     

    June 13^th  – 15^th, 2013

    Breckinridge Fine Arts Center, Breckenridge, TX 

    $220  (Bring your own supplies – list will be 
    provided.)

Contact Debra at: 830-928-3393 or 
debra.richardson@dkrichardson-artist.com

Interview with Spotlight Artist for March, D.K. Richardson: 

1) When and how did you first became seriously interested in art? I was fortunate to have a school teacher tell my mom that I was able to draw and color beyond the level of my peers. Growing up, when asked what I wanted to be, my reply was always, “I am going to be a famous artist.” I’m not sure what made me say “famous”. I’m still working on that part! Art has always been the main focus of my attention.

2) What is your training, and what medium(s) / subject matter do you work in? I was a Fine Art major at Abilene Christian University and credit much of my early knowledge to Dr. Brent Green. I work primarily in pastel and oil.

"Ella" by D.K. Richardson

3) What do you express in your work?  My focus is on capturing the essence of a person’s spirit – that “something” beyond what we see and touch that makes each of us unique.

4) What artists/professionals have been your biggest influences? As a child I studied with an artist, Mazie Sororus, who was native to and trained in Paris, France. Dr. Brent Green was the next major influence who helped mold my artistic vision in college. In the last few years, Daniel Greene has been the biggest influence. Others I watch and admire are Anthony Rider, David Gray, and Jacob Collins.

5) What do you do to gain new inspiration for your work? I am never without inspiration. Often an emotion or something I see triggers ideas. I am mostly concerned that I will never be able to paint all the ideas I have and that will come to me.

6) What would you like to be doing with your art ten years from now? I hope to have more international exposure for my work. In the next ten years I want to be teaching more workshops to encourage and help build confidence in other artists. The only thing that holds     any of us back from being what we want and dream of is fear.

7) Do you set goals for yourself concerning the making of your art? I set goals, but they are more in the form of thoughts and role playing. I don’t always write them down.

8) Are you happy with your job choice as an artist? Do you have any regrets in this career choice or things you would have done differently?  Nothing is more exciting to me than being an artist. The only regret I have is that I was not more confident in my earlier years. I wish I had been braver!

9) Any fun or interesting facts about yourself that you'd like to share?  I studied filmmaking in NYC for four years. That time thinking about “painting with a camera”; movement; emotion, helped me develop how I think about my subjects and made my compositions    stronger.

10) Best piece of advice for other artists? Stop being afraid! You have nothing to lose and everything to gain!

"Sittin' on the Fence" by D.K. Richardson

CONTACT THE ARTIST:
D.K. RICHARDSON
Cell: 830-928-3393
Email: debra.richardson@dkrichardson-artist.com
Website: www.dkrichardson-artist.com

Recap: Judith Carducci Workshop, January 2012

Hi everyone,
This is your TX ambassador, Anna Rose Bain writing...
I hope that this spring is finding you happy, successful, and painting up a storm! I thought I would share a little about a recent workshop I attended with one of the Portrait Society's most esteemed faculty members, Judith Carducci. If you've ever had the opportunity to learn from her, or hear her speak at PSOA conferences, you know that Judy is a firm believer in working exclusively from life. Because of her purist dedication to life drawing and painting, and her passion for her craft, Judy's work is incredibly strong and vibrant. She is also a great storyteller and for every point she makes in her teaching, she can give an example from her wealth of experience. Personally, I have gained a great deal from her instruction and advice, and I hope that if you get a chance to study with her, you will take advantage of the opportunity! She is a great artist and person, but... she won't let you off easy. Prepare to be challenged! The 14 of us who took her January workshop in Dallas, certainly were!

Here are some pictures from the 5-day workshop.

Judy at the beginning of her demo, day 1. The model was WWII veteran, Jim.

Explaining the anatomy of the ear.

Measuring the length of the face.

Judy's finished charcoal demo of Jim (with a sketch of eye - part of her demonstration of the anatomy of facial features)

Our wonderful host was Michael Mentler, head of the Society of Figurative Arts. The workshop took place at his studio (samples of his artwork in the background). I really love this shot of him! :-)

Judy would demo in the morning, and then the students got their shot at it in the afternoon to impliment what they learned. Above: artist Christen Benat, working on a profile view.

The first day was focused primarily on values, so we stuck to black and white, or in my case, brown and white. Here is my little monochromatic sketch of Jim, in oil on canvas. I only used Rembrandt's transparent oxide brown and white.

The model for day #2: Sylett, an artist's model with 30 years of experience! Judith really enjoyed doing this demo for us, and we enjoyed watching! She was working on a brand new line of Canson pastel board, courtesy of Canson via Michael Mentler (Michael represents their brand).

The finished demo. A solid, colorful, and exciting portrait!

The students hard at work.

My little 12x9 profile study of Sylett.

 Michael Mentler posed for Judy on day 4.

She began and finished the portrait in charcoal, realizing early on that it didn't need any color; it was already a strong impression! 

The finished portrait of Michael... or should I say, Gandalf the wizard? (Sorry, Michael, couldn't resist!)

Our afternoon model, Buck, was no less exciting! Here he is posing with a wolf skin hat, turquoise jewelry, and a staff. 

Artist Rebecca McClure off to a very strong start. You could really feel the energy in the room!

An exciting rendition by Ellen Moore.

 Here's mine. I really took Judy's advice to heart: no matter where you are positioned in front of the model, find something you LOVE about the pose and run with it!I loved the backlighting on the furry hat, as well as the mysterious shadow that the rim cast over Buck's eyes.

On the last day of the workshop, Judy did a self-portrait as her demo. 

The progression was very exciting to watch! We all sat riveted and humbled by her masterful execution of the self portrait.  

Here it is finished. One of the students purchased this piece.

Finally, a group photo (sans two of the students, Carole Fadal and Connie Erickson -- we missed you, ladies!), with Judy holding her magnificent portrait.

Here's what Judith herself had to say about the workshop after it was done:

I've just returned from Dallas where I was a guest of Becky and Hank Pearson (Becky is the pert redhead on the right in the group photo) and the workshop was hosted by Michael Mentler of The Society of Figurative Arts. Michael's studio is an ideal place for a workshop, with good lighting, space, easels, materials, and absolutely splendid models with variety of characteristics to challenge the por...traitist. Michael, and his assistant, the artist Anna Bain, were always available to make things work for our comfort.

It was a wonderful group! VERY enthusiastic artists. Three of them had been in my workshop in southern France last summer.

One of them bought the self-portrait I'm holding. She had asked earlier "Why would anybody want to buy a portrait of a person they didn't know?"

I told her that sometimes people are intrigued by the character, or it reminds them of somebody they know and love or a member of their family; I have a painting over my desk of a young man I don't know but he looks like my son and could be an "ancestor" - portraits of one's ancestors being prized where I come from. And sometimes they are bought by artists who are impressed by the work, the composition, the color, the brushwork, the lighting - and want to go to school on it. Or they are just beautiful or wonderful works that the person wants to own and enjoy looking at. Ironically, she then fell in love and couldn't resist mine!

To find out more about Judy's workshops and see more of her amazing portrait work, visit her website at:
http://www.judithcarducci.com/, or her Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Judith-Carducci-Artist/293819957331633

Also, if you would like to share about any workshops you may have benefitted from recently, PLEASE do! Send your written blog post, along with some photos, to Anna Rose Bain at: annarosebain@gmail.com. Your fellow Texas portrait artists look forward to hearing from YOU! :-)



News from Pastel Artist Daggi Wallace

This post submitted by Dallas member Daggi Wallace:

"Innocence Lost" 22x16

This piece won the following awards:

• Degas Pastel Society Award at the Pastel Society of America's 39th Juried Exhibition at the National Arts Club in New York City,Sept 2011
• Honorable Mention at the International Association of Pastel Societies, Dec 2011
• Second Place at the Art Connection Member Show at the Irving Art Center in Irving, TX, Oct 2011

Other awards and recognitions:

• “Choices” and “Searching” were both awarded Honorable Mention at the Pastel Society of the Southwest Juried Show, Richardson, TX, Nov 2011 (juror Doug Dawson)
• Everett Raymond Kinstler juried my three paintings "This, too Shall Pass", "Broken Promises" and "Treasures Along the Path" into the Richeson 75 Figure/Portrait competition
• I was voted in as full member of the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club this summer
• My painting "Secrets" was included in their 113th Annual Juried Exhibition at the National Arts Club in NYC in September
• “Broken Promises” also was accepted into the International Association of Pastel Societies show, Dec 2011
• I had a solo exhibition featuring my Moni’s Kids nonprofit portraits (aiding children in need) and my Up Close & Personal series at Luminarte Design Gallery in Dallas, TX, Oct 2011.

Thanks for letting me share!
Wishing you all the Best for the Holiday Season!
Daggi Wallace

Upcoming Event and News from Pastel Artist, Daggi Wallace

This post submitted by Dallas member Daggi Wallace:

Please, join me this Saturday, Oct 15th, 2011 at 7pm at Luminarte Design Gallery in Dallas, Tx, for my first solo exhibition. The show features the first series of portraits from my nonprofit Moni's Kids, plus all new work from my Up Close & Personal series. The proceeds from sales of the Moni's Kids portraits go towards the library we started at their orphanage in Haiti this past summer.

If you know anyone else who might like to stop by, please feel free to forward this to them.
Thank you for your support!
Best,

Daggi

Other exciting news from Daggi:

Innocence Lost, 22x16, pastel

This painting won the Degas Pastel Society Award at the 39th Annual Pastel Society of America Exhibition at the National Arts Club in NYC last month. I achieved signature membership earlier this year.

"Secrets" 12x24 pastel

"Secrets" is showing at the National Arts Club this month as part of the Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club 115th Annual Juried Exhibition.
I was also recently juried in as full member of the CLWAC.

I had three paintings juried into the Richeson 75 Figure/Portrait competition, two as part of the gallery exhibit and all three to be included in the catalogue. (Juror: Everett Raymond Kinstler)

Two paintings were accepted into the Pastel Society of the Southwest National Juried Show (Juror: Doug Dawson). The show runs from Nov 1-28 at the Eisemann Center in Richardson, TX. The reception and awards ceremony is on Nov 15th, from 6-9pm.

My website - Pastel Paintings that Capture Life's Moments http://www.daggistudio.com/
"Moni's Kids", my non-profit project http://www.daggistudio.com/page/358/monis-kids-non-profit-project
My blog, http://www.daggistudio.com/blog
My studio facebook page, http://www.facebook.com/daggiwallacestudio
Moni's Kids facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Monis-Kids/124149241002344?sk=wall