I have recently painted the portraits of three dear friends. There was a little arm twisting involved but in the end they were pretty  good sports and gave me permission. It can be intimidating to have your portrait painted.  Like hearing your own voice recorded. (Do I really sound like a chipmunk?) Seeing yourself as others see you can be discouraging. So it is important that we do our best to accurately depict our model. Just as important, in my opinion, is to bring out the beauty we see in that person. The fact that the three recent portraits are of lovely young ladies was a big help.  But suppose you are not painting physically lovely or handsome people. Can you accurately depict a person and bring out what you find attractive about them? I think it is possible if you look for and define that special quality you see in the person. Kind eyes, an encouraging smile, a gentile spirit can be even more lovely than surface beauty.
There are plenty of unattractive qualities that creep into our lives. All of us have them. Some more than others. Grumpiness, negative outlooks, complaining and discouragements abound. These are easy to see for the most part since they seem to surround us. So it may take some effort to spot good qualities in a curmudgeon. I think it is worth a try.  If we start seeing the beautiful side of the people around us it stands to reason that we will be surrounded with beauty!  If , on the other hand, we only see the garbage...you get the picture.  Being an artist, I love being around beauty.  I just need to look for it. Best wishes, Jerry

I just finished teaching a workshop on "Still Life in Oils" at the Emerald Art Center in Springfield, OR.  I'm always going over in my mind what might be useful for future workshops.  One thing I have been aware of recently is the lack of drawing in my daily schedule.  I used to draw constantly.  And I think the drawing helped my painting.  But, thinking I would save time and paint faster, I've eliminated one basic step in preparation for the painting...the drawing.  Sketching ideas for painting is a great way to get inspired.  One idea leads to another as enthusiasm builds.  Making a drawing in preparation is an easy way to work out composition and lighting ideas.  This is especially useful when I don't  have the subject right in front of me for reference.
A while back my mom showed interest in a small painting I'd done of an antique silver "olive picker" with green olives.
The painting had already sold.  So, going from the basic idea in the first painting, I did a sketch with some changes here and there of the same objects.  With that sketch in front of me, I did the complete painting in just a few hours.  Guess what mom in getting for Mother's Day.
The painting went so fast and easy.  And the drawing was fun!  If you have been goofing off  in the drawing department of your studio get those pencils and erasers out.  A good sketch is a good road map to good painting.  Best wishes and a Happy Mother's Day, Jerry