PETE

I decided to tackle a portrait of my son. He has grown a big beard over quarantine and I was really keen to give that a try.

It is so different working on a portrait of someone you know intimately. I found myself being much more critical of my work and a little anxious whether or not my son would like it or if it even looked like him. It turns out he liked it after all but I have to say, it was my most challenging to date.

We did a little photo shoot so that I could get a good reference picture with the light source coming from the right to shadow the left side of his face. I loved the picture so much. He changed into the flannel shirt, last minute. That was very challenging to recreate. Good to note for future pictures.

Here is a close up of the beard. I used a lot of bullion knots to recreate the curliness.

I struggled to capture the light mustache. It wasn’t showing so I had to add some bold yellow which kind of surprised me.

I love working on beards! This one was filled with swirls of different colors.

The shirt was the really challenging and I’m still not quite sure I nailed it but I love the tiny buttons.

The eyes were a challenge, as well. They take on different colors depending on what he is wearing and have lots of little speckles of other colors in them. One of my very favorite things about making art is the ability to observe these tiny delicate details that I might not have noticed otherwise.

I love working on hair because it looks so real. My favorite part in any painting or embroidery is adding highlights. It really brings the work to life.

Pete!!!!!!

Thanks for stopping by! Hope you are staying safe and healthy!

XXXXOOOO

Pam