Figure in blue hat

[Thomasin Dewhurst]

Thank-you, Mischa and Alexandra, for your most helpful critiques. This is one of my most recent works and the best I was capable of when I painted it. (Athough, I always seem to surprise myself with getting better with each new work, and crits like yours certainly help with motivating improvement.)

Mischa, I do still have a certain anxiety when I paint - you know, the old problem of being too precious - I do feel like I will obliterate my individual style if I work too much on a painting. I'd rather just paint a new one. That being said, I don't want to move away from the immediacy of paint application and the roughness, even ugliness of paintmarks which I feel is my own. But, again, if it is my own, then, as you said, it will take care of itself.

Could you please tell me what you saw in the work, Mischa, that made you say I might be holding things back.

Alexandra, I'll take a look at the shadows again. Under the arm - the armpit - there was a certain fleshiness, but I do think,after looking again, the orange edge to the shadow may have a too-exaggerated curve to the right. The model was fleshy, but I see what you mean about the armpit being concave there. I wasn't sure, though, what you meant about the ambiguity of the blue shadow under the naval - I'll take another look.

All in all, the key to everything seems to be drawing, drawing , drawing. Which is, in fact, great as it is what I like best about the whole affair.

Thanks again for the crits. They made me want to get up and paint.

[Richard Bingham]

Two questions:

1. Why ??

2. Size, support/ ground ??

Thank you.

PS You certainly own the "chops" to do anything you please, it appears.

[Thomasin Dewhurst]

Richard - Why? Well, it just happened really. I was painting the figure with the blue hat from the front. It was towards the end of the Californian summer, and I had images of light and the heat floating around my head, and a pleasant feeling of my continuing the tradition of the Californian Realists of mid last century, but I was working myself more and more deeply into a rut fussing with something - I can't remember what now - and then a glance at the form and shadows at the side of the figure inspired me to do the whole thing again. When I began this second time, the painting's initial marks suggested that the head was turned away, so that's what I did. I had been looking at Homer's paintings at the time too, so that's probably what gave me the idea of a hat.

It's oil on canvas, 30" x 24".

[Richard Bingham]

Thomasin, thank you. It's much easier to appraise a work on-monitor when the scale is known. I like your paint handling.

[Thomasin Dewhurst]

I presume this is why you asked "why?", Richard. Was I right?

[Richard Bingham]

Actually, I was hoping you'd explain a little more about the painting philosophy you mentioned, compositional considerations, and the wherefore of the incongruity of a nude wearing a hat . . .

[Michele Rushworth]

I love the sun drenched skintones and the clear cool areas that are influenced by the sky.

[Thomasin Dewhurst]

Thank-you, Michele. Sorry for the late reply!