CRITIQUE 15 -PROPORTIONS: EYES

There are many good things about your sketch! You have a created a good likeness to the original image and I will show you how to make a few tweaks to get it even closer.

I will break down your portrait sketch review into several parts so we can be more thorough. 

Below is part one.

I want to focus on placement of eyes in relation to each other and the space for the nose. I would recommend sketching just the eyes and bridge of nose (utilizing the tips) a few times until you begin to see more and more details. The more you draw something - the more you see its details.

You have the lower edge of the eyes in proper alignment with each other in your sketch, but if it ever becomes an issue, you can see how a line under the eyes on the original would help you clearly visualize how the eyes are placed on the face.

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MAGIC FLESH TONE FORMULA!

HOW TO MIX FLESH TONES

Mixing correct flesh tones is the Holy Grail of portrait painting! No wonder manufactures make tubes labeled "flesh"!!

The first thing to wrap your mind around is that a tube of paint labeled "flesh" - isn't!  
Don't be fooled into thinking you will buy a magic tube of flesh and begin painting accurate skin tones with it. (first of all, think logically - it is labeled "flesh" but WHOSE flesh? Yours? Anyone's you know? How about anyone's you have ever seen before??  Really look at the color and compare it to several types of real skin!

You may have done or have heard of others doing a great deal of work to find some artist's secret recipe to making fleshtones?    Hogwash!! While there are some common sense guidelines for specific skin types ... there is no one magic bullet formula for mixing "fleshtones."

Retrain your mind to think differently about "white" flesh, "brown or black" Flesh because there is no such flesh in real life!

While creating self-portraits with a group of children several of them candidly stated that they had white or black or brown flesh and reached for that color of pencil or paint.

My job was to teach them to see the actual colors in their flesh!

I held up a sheet of bright white typing paper which they all agreed was white. I passed out a sheet to each student and asked them to place their hand on the paper and now tell me what color their skin is. Surprisingly some still said the caucasian skin was "white" and any of color was black. I went on to demonstrate and explain the nature of flesh. They started seeing the actual colors instead of the labels.

*We are loaded with preconceptions about colors, shapes and objects at a very young age. When asked to describe something or draw it, we revert back to these preconceived notions learned very early in life. These are most likely very primitive perceptions of what something actually is.

Same holds true with color.
If asked "what color is the sky" many will just say "blue."  But is it just blue? Can you grab a tube of blue paint and paint any sky? (first decision would be which blue! "Sky Blue"??)

HOW TO PAINT FLESH:

Flesh is just like any other object you paint - it is subject to its origin and to its surroundings.  

What I mean by that is its origin may be native american, caucasian, etc,  while its surroundings may be wood, metal, colored cloth, the atmosphere, type of lighting, ie reflective light, and so on.
 

Knowledgeable artists represent a pure white flower or cloth using a myriad of colors not just white and gray/black.  That is how flesh is.  It isn't pure white, pink, black, brown etc.   

There is no single formula for flesh!!
So you might wonder if you should own a tube of "flesh" paint?   From my personal and teaching experience I say not early on as it can be more confusing than helpful.  Some tube "fleshes" tend to go muddy/gray rather quickly when mixed with other colors, so if you already own a tube or plan to buy one anyway... it is important to understand what colors make up your tube of "flesh" if you plan to use it as a base for mixing other needed flesh tones.  

You will find some common ground but in general, every time you paint a portrait, you will recreate what color "flesh" is. The key is to be observant to the local colors, reflective color, shadows, surroundings, etc.

If you would like a critique or have a question- please drop me a message! 

©CJ Rider

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HOW TO CREATE AND SELL PRINTS of your art/photography online

There are a couple of ways to sell prints, cards, and other products with your artwork on them.  

1. The first thing you must have is a LARGE clean (not blury/not pixelated) image file. 
2. To sell at physical art fairs you must fit all of the showing requirements (proper tables, tent, etc)
3. To sell art prints online... All you need is a great high-quality image file!

ONLINE:
I belong to many online sites that will sell artprints, cards, images on T-shirts, cups, bags,... the sky is the limit on what you can find.
I particularly enjoy FineArtAmerica.com for prints. You can have an account to participate in the site for free. But it is $30. USD per year to belong and set up print sales.
With that fee you can set up your own gallery like this: http://cj-rider.artistwebsites.com
PLUS you have another gallery here on your profile like this: http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/cj-rider.html
It is a highly visible site but you are ultimately responsible for your own online and in person promotion of your works.  No guarantees- but I find it quite useful and continue to have pretty good sales there.
You can also use it to set up "events" taking place here on OA- or blog about your posts here at OA. etc. Making things come full circle back to OA! Thus helping this site grow.
If you have any questions about making hi resolution images for printing - or whatever - please ask, maybe I will know.  I have done a lot of this stuff through out my career and I am happy to share what I know.

• Very important to use a tripod when taking art photos!  
• Use an 8mp or better camera for larger prints
• smaller mp cameras are ok for postcards, notecards, and other small prints.

You can google and find numerous sites to post and sell prints, cards, etc.
Redbubble, Etsy, Fine Art America, Devientart and many more - 
I have so far found Fine Art America is a well rounded and fair site. Also fairly easy to use.
However- you still have to do self promotion and get your work out there - the sites are not the "end all" to your print sales.
Anyone have any other favorites tips?
cj

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New Canvas - aka - paint vampire

A New Canvas:

1. Ever have colors on a painting turn dull shortly after drying?
2. Or the surface is like the sahara desert even though you KNOW you laid on lots of paint?
3. Do you struggle with a new canvas trying to get enough paint on it? the surface sucks in the paint like a paint-vampire?

WELL... you are not alone! A new canvas or canvas board actually needs 2 or even 3 more layers of gesso with a light sanding inbetween.


WHY gesso a new canvas? From the manufacturer, the canvas is only thinly coated with a gesso leaving much of the nap or roughness of the canvas.

Sometimes the tops of the weave are very thinly coated. When you start painting with your expensive paints, you first must fill the nooks and crannies with paint before it will lay across the surface. You also must lay on enough paint to make up for the absorbency of the thinly gesso'd areas.
Also, when you paint with a thin layer of paint or use thinned paint it will drop down into the nap of the canvas  and fill up the nooks before it lays across the surface and gives you the color and consistency you desire. (moisture and pigment will also be sucked into the dry thirsty canvas)
You have probably seen paintings where the upper nubs of the canvas nap show their white tops through the paint? Unless you want this look, you need to apply more gesso before painting to fill up these gaps before starting your painting.
Even if it appears that you have enough paint on the canvas, as it drys, the paint is slowly drawn into the canvas dulling the color or making it sink into the nap.
Solution: Apply 2 or 3 layers of gesso, dried and sanded between each layer, - or apply as many layers until you have the surface you want.

TIP: stop using your expensive pigments as gesso - prime the canvas before you begin!

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CRITIQUE 13 geoff in oil part 2

Wow Pandora, you have been busy!!

Yes, the blue background is fine.
I see you did many updates! You are doing a great job!
The T-shirt is a nice add in!

Your flesh tones are very nice, but be careful of the dark areas that they do not become too gray-blue.

The cheek shapes are looking good and I know it took a lot of study and work to accomplish this level of detail.

Note how detail at jaw-line and chin make face appear longer and less round.



EDITS BY PANDORA:

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CRITIQUE 13 - geoff in oil

QUESTION:
I would appreciate any help that you can give me, First portrait  oil painting 

Thank you Pandora

CRITIQUE:

Coming along nicely!  

I recommend placing some preliminary lines in your drawing before painting to make sure you have your angles and features in the right position. you will continue to check these angles as you paint. See photograph as well as line across the eyes on painting. 

The left side of the face (as we are looking at the image) is good and you also have a nice cheek color there but note how that eye and eyebrow are a tad large and low.  I have made it more obvious by drawing a line across the painting and on the photo.

TIP:
tape the photo directly on your canvas - have it lined up with the painting edges maybe put it tight in a corner of the canvas so you have 2 edges lined up- now put a ruler across the eyes in the photo and that same angle should be reflected in the eyes in your painting. 

Reflect back to the instructions for the drawing critique- note the angle of the jawline and define the shape of the chin. 

Note that the neck needs to be a tad wider on right side (as we look at the painting). 

You are doing great! just keep refining the features and watch it evolve!!  
This is a beautiful painting Pandora - it evokes much feeling in the viewer!

cj

EDITs BY ALICE:

CRITIQUE TO BE CONTINUED....
>>HERE<<

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CRITIQUE 12 - TWO ABSTRACTS part 1 and 2

QUESTION from Jan Stickland:  Please give me your honest opinion of them and if i could improve on them somehow
ANSWER:  
Hi Jan - thank you so much for submitting for a critique!  Your abstracts are vibrant and full of color!  Very lovely!!
I don't need to talk color as you have a vast knowledge of it already!!
But I will talk about using value to set up a composition in a painting like this where you cannot lean on the structure of shapes to create the composition.

When an image has a lot of the same or similar value it may not have a strong focal point or direction for the eye to follow or be held in the piece.  
If you notice in the first image, it is much the same value overall, however, there is a hint of the eye heading toward the vortex...  so - If I enhanced that though hopefully we will see a stronger composition with interest to make the eye travel within the piece and also an area to slightly hold the eye's interest.
ORIGINAL PAINTING:

EDITED IMAGE:
Note the stronger lighted areas and how they grab your eye and lead you around the painting in a swirl motion to the center dark area just below the highlighted school of fish.

 There are several patterns that artists utilize in paintings whether they are abstract or representational.  one is the z pattern another is the triangle and so on.  These patterns make the eye follow through the piece to "read" it and create visual interest and visual sense.

For people who read left to right the eye naturally looks for patterns that match that idea.  Same with right to left readers, etc.
A strong pattern in this piece (to me) is a triangle

This is not the only answer, of course...  but it might give you a jump start!  
Best of luck with your work - it is wonderful!!
cj
PART 2:

QUESTION from Jan Stickland:  Please give me your honest opinion of them and if i could improve on them somehow
ANSWER:  PART 2 
Hi Jan - thank you so much for submitting for a critique!  Your abstracts are vibrant and full of color!  Very lovely!!  And I apologize for the photoshop mutilation of your artwork!  ;)
Again, great use of color and great excitement and movement in your 
ORIGINAL WORK:

Of course - for every "rule" there is the exception!  
I spoke a bit about patterns with your last abstract piece in part 1.

We read from left to right and tend to read paintings in the same manner.  If we don't  find landmarks where we expect them, then we are confused and do not know that to look at.
So, as in this piece, we give em landmarks via shape size and by changing value and contrasting areas in this
CRITIQUE:

So you see ... we have set the pattern the eye will follow with the falling orbs into a dark center with a glowing atmosphere that leads to the focal point of the highest contrasting values which is the left edge of the "hole"    
So you can set up tried and true patterns in your paintings - OR, you can set your own path for the eye to follow through your piece.
I hope that helps some - and remember - everything said is brought from that person's experiences in life - so you might find other solutions that work just as well from your experiences.  
There are many paths to the same goal! -cj
Best to you -
CJ

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