Recent Commissions

Here are a couple of recently finished commissions.  I was lucky to be working with some wonderful (and wonderfully patient!) people who wanted me to paint their dogs and grandchildren.  I was especially looking forward to painting the boys.  They are so adorable, and I love painting little hands and feet.  I'm super happy with the way these paintings turned out, but disappointed in my inability to get the colors to show up accurately in the pictures.  I hope you'll take my word for it that they look much better in person!

22" x 28"

Soft Pastel on Suede Matboard

18" x 24"

Soft Pastel on Suede Matboard

Trying Pan Pastels

To tell you the truth, I've never been tempted to buy Pan Pastels.  Part of what I like about soft pastels is a tactile thing - being able to hold them and blend with my hand, painting with nothing between me and the paint.  I didn't think I would like Pan Pastels (if you don't know what Pan Pastels are, click here to find out).  However, since I recently received them for free (my award for the Pastels USA show) I took the opportunity to experiment with them.

I started with a sheet of Pastelmat paper.  This support seems perfect for the Pans.  There were lots of tools included, so I pulled out a large oval sponge and spread green all over the paper.  It was awesome!  It took just a few minutes and didn't require the blending that my other pastels would have needed.  Using the other tools took a bit of getting used to, and was a bit awkward for me.  Sometimes I liked the results, sometimes not.  Of course, I had to supplement colors from my existing pastel stock.  I found I could use the tools with softer pastels (like Terry Ludwigs) in the same manner as the Pans, but it didn't work with my Mount Visions.  However, the tools blended the Mount Visions just fine on the paper.

Turns out, I liked the Pans much more than I thought I would.  I particularly liked being able to cover a large area so quickly and easily.  I wouldn't want to use them exclusively, but I think they are a nice addition to my existing stock of pastels.

"Retired"

19.5" x 27.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

Another Guitar Player in Pastel

I finally finished the pastel I've been working on.  This one was uncooperative and a bit of a struggle to paint, but overall I'm happy with the results.

"Solo"

27.5" x 19.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

New Oil Painting

I  recently started playing with oils again.  The idea for this painting just popped into my head.  I don't know why, but some people think it really happened.   My daughter was my willing model for this painting, and she wasn't actually stood up.  It's just something I made up for fun.

"Stood Up"

36" x 48"

Oil on Canvas

Figurative Painting in Soft Pastel

This is something I started last month.  It's one of those paintings that requires thousands of decisions (well, they all do, but this one seemed to require more than usual).  Before I start painting something this labor intensive, I work out the major decisions in Photoshop; move things around, take things out, change colors, etc.  As I painted this, I found myself wishing I'd considered a few more options.  I'll have to try out those ideas on another painting, though, because I'm ready to call this one finished.

"Takeout"

24" x 18"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

Guitar Player

I've been working fairly small for quite a while, so I decided to paint something big.  I totally enjoyed painting this one.

"Acoustic"

27.5" x 19.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

Sushi Chef - Painting on Pastelmat with WIP pics

Here is my second painting on Pastelmat.  It's still trial and error for me at this point, but I'm getting used to the paper, and I like it very much.

Sushi Chef

19.5" x 15.5"

Soft Pastel on Pastelmat

People keep asking me for WIPs, so I tried to remember to take some pictures along the way so I could show you my process.


First, I started out with a grid.  I laugh at myself when I try to grid, because I can never get the grid even, or to accurately match the reference photo grid.  And even if I had everything accurate, I don't have the patience to copy the boxes exactly.  So for me, a grid is more of a tool I use for the initial placement of the image, and then I draw the picture from the computer monitor.  I also correct and redraw as necessary when I'm painting.


For the grid, I took a few drawing pencils and made small marks on the paper.  Then I erased the marks with a kneaded eraser.  I used the pencil that erased the best.  I drew the painting with a pastel pencil, and lost parts of my drawing when the pastel pencil rubbed off, so next time I'm just going to use the drawing pencil. 


A note about pastel removal:  A kneaded eraser pulls up pastel very nicely on this paper, particularly if you're not trying to pull up a lot.  I found Q-tips effective when I wanted to remove a lot of pastel (meaning many layers).  A soft paintbrush is also effective.  I actually tried the vacuum, and was surprised at how ineffective it was (and my vacuum has a lot of suction!).


Here is my initial drawing:

I started painting the hat and face first.

Then the hair and shirt.

Then I finished the shirt and started the background.

Next I have a gap in the photos (sorry).  When I got to the hands, I realized you might like to see how I paint skin (I used the same method for the face, just didn't get pics of it), and thought to get a photo.  First, I redrew the hands with a pastel pencil (the drawing had faded by the time I was ready to paint the hands).  Next, I painted the local color of the skin, using probably six different pastel colors. 

Next, I blended that, then applied more pastel in the same manner, then blended again.  After that, I touched up with pastels and pastel pencils to define the hands a bit better (sorry, I got so into my painting I forgot to take pics!).

  

After that, I made corrections, removed things that weren't necessary, etc.  Here's the finished painting once again.

I am really getting to like the Pastelmat.  I like the fact that it is so soft, but I can get a nice sharp line on it.  It takes a lot of pastel, though not nearly as much as suede matboard.  This paper will probably replace La Carte for me.  I get similar results, but a bit better coverage, and blending is much easier on the fingertips.  As far as dust goes, I'd say I get less dust than La Carte, but much more than suede matboard.  I would use this paper for anything I would normally use La Carte for, and probably suede matboard and velour paper as well, with the exception of animals.  Once I get used to the paper, I may try fur again and reevaluate.


I hope this was interesting for you, despite the gaps in my photos!

The Traveler

I've just finished a very difficult commission which has taken up all my painting time over the last few weeks. I know, you thought I was sitting around eating bonbons and not working, and I can't even show you proof until after Christmas (the client is giving the painting as a Christmas gift). You'll just have to take my word for it that I was slaving away at my easel.

I was able to squeeze in some time to paint the current Different Strokes From Different Folks challenge, though, so I can show you that. I had intended to paint all three figures from the reference photo, but given the time crunch I decided I should make the composition easier. All those lost edges were fun to paint, and fun and easy was just what I needed after that commission!

The Traveler

6" x 6"

Soft Pastel on Suede Matboard

A couple of miscellaneous items:

Since I last posted, I have a new web site. My soft pastel demo is on my site, so those of you who were waiting for it can now access the demo at KariTirrell.com.

Also, many people have tried to add me as a friend on Facebook over the last few months. I created an artist page on Facebook, so you can now join me there. Either click here, or in the blog sidebar. Thanks!

Hot Off The Easel

My first few attempts at painting in oil were small (5”x7”) paintings of my daughter reading. When I painted them last year, I decided it would be a good subject for a large painting. Of course, at the time I was planning on doing it in oil, but I never got around to it. Since I recently got a full set of Mount Visions pastels, I’ve been playing large. I thought it would be fun to see if I could paint this in pastels instead of oils. Turns out, it really was fun.

"Idle Moments"

24” x 28”

Soft Pastels on Suede Matboard

New York Stock Exchange

This is my version of Karin Jurick’s photo of the New York Stock Exchange, painted for the Different Strokes From Different Folks blog. This was a good challenge for me. It is something I never would have chosen to paint. The photo is a huge scene of the NYSE, and I had no desire to paint the whole thing! I cropped the original picture a few different ways, and chose the one I liked best. But I really wanted the guy with the red coat, so I changed things around and painted off of two of the crops. I purposely chose a small surface for this painting, so it would be impossible for me to obsess and paint too much detail. It was a bit of a departure for me, but overall I’m happy with the way it turned out.

"Wall Street"

6"x6"

Oil on Board

(SOLD)

Another Portrait

This is a small painting of my daughter. My intention when I started was to create something loose and expressive. So I didn’t draw it out first, I just blocked in the shapes and then refined from there. And refined, and refined. I should have stopped earlier, when it was still somewhat loose, but I couldn’t do it. I was obsessed. I finally stuck it in a frame to keep myself away from it. If it wasn’t framed, I’d still be working on it. A little blending here, a little shading there.

4"x6"

Soft Pastel on Suede Matboard

Finished Oil Paintings

5"x7"

Oil on board

Untitled at the moment

I didn't get much artwork completed over the summer, with kids around all the time, vacations, and the usual summer distractions. These two paintings were my sole oil painting accomplishments, and it took all summer to complete them. I painted them at the same time so they would look like they belong together. I’m not planning more of these tiny paintings anytime soon! The figures are so small I often had to use a magnifying glass to paint the detail. But overall, I’m pleased with the way they turned out. They are untilted, but hopefully I’ll think up something clever soon (any suggestions?).

On a fun note, my pastel paintings “Annie” and “In Memory of Kacie” just won Member’s Choice and Patron’s Choice, respectively, in EBSQ’s Pet Portrait Swap show!