I completely remixed the paint, changing my palette, and repainted the skin tones. And gave myself a smirk in the process accidentally. Too much highlight on the upper lip...I will change that! I used, on the advise of David Gray's blog, a combination of raw umber and yellow ochre. And I used warm white and venetian red as an alternate to his recommendation of terra rosa, which I could not find. Then I fearlessly laid down some highlights and shadows to see if I like the combinations and used a more painterly effect with more brush strokes and less blending. The light is still not right, but I like the improvement in the flesh tones. As I do this exercise I am being reminded of the Shakespearean quote my mom would tell me...TO THINE OWN SELF BE TRUE...so while being inspired by other artists, we must remember to be ourselves when we create. There is only one you, after all! Now, go and PAINT SOMETHING!  :  )

I goofed up the skin tones and the contouring, but I added jowls for more realism and a slight smile, as my friends and family aren't used to seeing me so serious...I have to come back to this to fix what I digressed on. The nice thing is, since this project is so experimental for me, I am learning a lot from it. And I have no fear of painting over areas to improve (or NOT) because, after all, it is only PAINT!

I felt like before I proceed, I need to figure out what is going on with my mix for the skin tones, so I did a quick color study. Warm white, aliz crimson, and burnt sienna adds more warmth than burnt umber I think. I need more warmth.

I had only 15 minutes today, but did a bit of oiling in and a bit of hair detail. Gotta go! Have a great day!

Moving right along...more than my 20 minutes a day, but I am trying to make up for my funk the last few months. My 20 minutes a day experiment lasted a full 3 months, and I found my drawing skills were greatly improved by it. Lots yet to do on this portrait, but it is coming along. I decided to leave my face alone today and work on my hat and the background. I've sure got a death grip on my paintbrush, huh? I like how I have given myself a facelift here and taken of a few pounds, too!

Here I am about three hours into my painting. I only get about 30 minutes at a time to paint, and then other things call me away. I am trying to work out the skin tones...each time it gets better, so I won't stop until I am satisfied. The lit areas are getting better, but the shadows are muddy and so I need to warm them up.

Day 1 Oil Self Portrait

I decided to doing something more serious, so I did the under painting of a new portrait. I will keep you posted!