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| Reflections of Mystelf ©2016 |
I decided to have fun and not do a conventional self portrait. I love to paint metal and glass and I new my sons baritone would make a great way to get a reflection of myself. The horn automatically flipped my reflection upside down, adding to the fun of the image.
I did not want to spend a lot of time on this painting because I had to fit it in around other paintings, classes, and the holidays. So, instead of masking a lot more of the lights in the horn, I only masked the whites and tiny highlights. You might be able to see a little masking fluid on this first image.
After masking, I started on the grays of the baritone and then jumped over to work on my self portrait. I figured if I didn't get my face right, I could start over before I got to far into the painting. One of my favorite grays to make now is ultramarine blue and italian burnt sienna.
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| Reflections of Myself ©2016 |
I wanted the paint on the palette in front to be warmer and provide a contrast to the blues and greens in the back. For the palette, I used pure pigment, and put it on pretty heavy, so that it would appear solid like the paint in my real palette.
I started to add more darks (mixing ultramarine and italian burnt sienna as dark as it would go). As, the painting neared completion, I added some warm reflections in the horn and completed my hand in the lower left. I like to start my skin tones with a warm mix of cadmium red and aureolin yellow. Then I add layers of other mixes.
The last time I did a self portrait was college. I am actually pleased with the final painting.
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| Reflections of Myself ©2016 |
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| Reflections of Myself ©2016 |
