Christy Talbott's drawing children from life
 

I'd been thinking for some time that I'd ideally love to do my children's portraits from life. I just feel that although extremely challenging, I'll be a better painter in the end if I work in this way. We'll see what happens! I've a lot to learn. Inspired by Michael G's life drawing sketchbook, I've decided to start my own thread to record my progress. I'd love to get critiques, so please feel free to offer them.

Here are drawings of Lilah (my daughter age 4) and my son Noah (age 10). I'm afraid some of these look cheesy and as though they are made up out of my mind. It's difficult to overcome this since I am drawing out of my mind to a large degree. They won't stay still for me. I think tomorrow I'll try to begin more concentrated studies of hands or feet.

Thank you for looking!

Christy! I am so glad that you have started this. :)

You have set for yourself a mighty task I must say. Drawing a model that sits still is hard enough, but children will present a consistently moving target. I think that ultimately for commissions you will have to work from a combination of life and photos - getting enough visual information to produce a finished piece from life alone is gonna be tough with the younger subjects.

And what a wonderful learning tool for you! It can only improve your work and hopefully your enjoyment of it all.

I like the first portrait drawing you have posted below. I agree that the others lack the intermediate level of finish that you were able to get in the first portrait - there is a lot to capture in a full figure and a whole other challenge of what to represent to get that level of finish.

How would you take something like one of those sketches and produce from it, and your memory, a high finish portrait?

One option might be to have an initial session where you do sketches like that, and also do a color sketch to capture skin tones and temperature from a live setting. Take some reference pics during that session as well. Take your materials off and work up an intermediate stage portrait. Get your subject back in and compare everything you have done - get refining notes either on paper or in your head. If you can, have them sit and work some more from life - even with them moving you will be able to observe so much that you don't get from a static photo.

Take it all back and work the intermediate into a final finished portrait.

Dunno, it is a challenge but a worthy one I think! Congrats on starting this! :)

Thank you so much Michael, I truly do appreciate your encouragement.

I guess I wasn't yet going for a high degree of finish. I will certainly at some point soon. I just feel i need to get a better grasp of anatomy at this point. It's much easier looking at a photo, as long as you can see, you really don't need to understand in the way that you need to with a moving target. In the drawing of Lilah on the stump, it not only doesn't look like her, but i've drawn her legs way too long. Doing the hand and foot sketches, I'm going to try for more detail. I realize that I'm going to need to do hundreds of these little sketches frankly. I'll try to be more discriminating in what I post. When you say you like the first sketch, did you mean the one of my son's face or the one of Lilah standing? Noah's is labeled #1, but hers is the first... (edit- I have moved Noah's to the post below)

I titled this thread "drawing children from life", but I'll be doing paintings as well.

Thanks again Michael.

Here's a sampling of more quick sketches of Lilah and a head study of Noah (not a super likeness this time). Still don't have a more detailed study. At least this is more observational than some of the earlier drawings.

Here's today's contribution.

I decided to draw someone who will actually sit for me-- even though she's not a child. Here's a self portrait done looking in a mirror. I did get a commission to do a portrait of a 22 yr old woman from life; I start on Monday. Of course this should be much easier than trying to paint a little child, still I'm a little anxious because I don't have a lot of working from life experience.

Ah Christy, what wonderful experience this portrait using a mature sitter will be for you! Congratulations on the commission! :)

The self portrait is good! I can see the likeness even from your little avatar pic.

Oh Christy! This is such an exciting thread! I can't tell you how fascinating it is to see your drawings. It gives us a much more complete picture of who you are and how you paint (and draw, of course) and think and feel. I love the descriptive quality of trying to catch someone in motion or a fleeting expression. I have a feeling that something is happening in your work in general and it will be really, really good. I am looking forward to seeing it develop.

I love these sketches Christy!

Thank you Michael, Alexandra and Enzie for your encouragement. I'm glad you like them. In doing this I'd been beginning to feel I couldn't draw :( which means I truly need this exercise!

Keep going, they are beautiful and I can't wait to see the portrait of the commissioned piece. I just know you will do a great job!! Let the nervousness work for you, that is what I try to do and sometimes it actually helps. Linda Brandon once told me to take slow deep breaths when you begin and to act like you are already a master portrait artist. It helps, believe me! Good luck. Let us know how it goes!

Oh... did I say that?! :oops:

It's hard to generalize how master portrait artists act in front of subjects. The artists I personally characterize as masters are all over the field in terms of how they act. :)

I hope I meant to advise that you should act in front of your client as if you've done this before, since she might be more nervous than you are.

Anyway, that is one fine self portrait and I am eager to hear how the sitting went, Christy!

Well, I'm ashamed to admit this... I chickened out :( I ended up taking photos of the 22 yr old, and we (she, her mom and I) picked a pose from the photos. She came back a couple days later, and I did work some from life. It seemed to look okay when she left, but as I continued to work on it from the photo, I realized that it just wasn't going to work. I'm not sure why it's not working. It could be that I toned the canvas a dark blue/gray. I can't seem to overcome a very cold feeling to the portrait though the photo and reality was warm enough.. I'll need to begin again. She was only here for a week and won't be back in town again till Christmas.

I feel I need a little practice painting friends or models from life before starting with paying clients. Or maybe I'll offer to do some for a drastically reduced rate so that I can gain experience.

Christy, Please don't do this. There is nothing wrong with doing any number of studies from life, and nothing wrong with the practice of getting sitters. I would really encourage [you U]not [/U] to sell something that you feel will be less than your best. Give the studies to your models, or donate them to an auction, or throw them away. I know that in five years, you would just hate to see less-than-your best-work out there

Chris, You're right; I wouldn't like to give a painting to anyone to hang on their wall that I didn't like myself. I was just thinking I'd have a lot of potential models that I wouldn't need to pay for! ;) I would tell them that my purpose in doing this is for practice and that I'd only sell (at a very reduced rate) a portrait that I feel is worthy of hanging. That would be okay, don't you think?

Christy, I think that idea is okay in general, but you're sounding a little apologetic and even self-deprecating. I would NOT let that come across to clients. Instead, practice saying that you prefer to do studies from life to familiarize yourself with the actual colors as well as with the features and structure of the head. Emphasize that you are not trying to get an exact likeness. Then you are off the hook if you do--which will start to happen more and more often.

I do this as often as possible (whenever a client agrees to it) because it really is a valuable resource. I put it next to my photographic references, and use it for color information, and also to remind myself of the brushstrokes that came naturally when I was face to face with the person.

I just want to add that we all could use a break from the relentless focus on the product in this profession. To devote time to the process is just as important.

Alex,

Brava.

Thank you for the good advice Alexandra and Chris too. I sincerely appreciate it. And I will have to practice saying that...

Christy, regardless of what happened at the sitting, I am really proud of you for doing this. Remember, it is pretty uncommon (at least in the USA) for artists to do commissioned portraits from life. Most of the artists I know who use live subjects for sittings use either family members or paid models for their figurative work.

Portrait clients do not care how you get there, they want an accurate likeness which meets their approval. It's hard to blame them for that, especially when large sums of money are involved.

I think one of the best ways to get free sitters is to trade off with another artist - he/she sits for twenty minutes, then you do.

In the meantime, you can draw objects from life to keep yourself in shape. I highly recommend my friend Paul Foxton's website, www.learning-to-see.co.uk . He taught himself how to work from life and is very articulate and generous with his ideas and methods. I think it's one of the best sites on the internet.

Linda, I am familiar with Paul's work but hadn't looked at his site. His work is phenomenal; it's now bookmarked, thank you! I'll be checking it regularly.

I'd love to do the trade off thing with other artists but really don't know any near me. I did do this quick oil sketch over month ago with my cousin from life who is an artist. I was visiting him in Pittsburgh. We were both painting each other at the same time.

I love the way you handle paint, Christy - so expressive and sensual. The forms look accurately placed, which suggests to me that the big shapes are right and you needed more time to be specific.

Cut yourself some slack and just do this without the pressure of commissions for a while.

I really would love to see you keep this up. I sure wish I were a big name painter to give you a Big Name Stamp of Approval or something. :) :thumbsup:

Thank you Linda, you are very kind and encouraging :) I feel as though I just got that stamp of approval. I'll do my best to keep up with this!

My left hand drawn quickly as the sun set. Also a self portrait, couldn't sleep... This isn't quite me, she looks a little younger.

I love these! Keep going!