Portrait Gallery

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​360-599-0136 or email zmc4us@yahoo.com


​Portrait Gallery Slide Show  Scroll down to see more!

PORTRAIT GALLERY

PORTRAITURE WAS MY FIRST LOVE. I still remember drawing my Aunt Margie when I was only six, and Lynn Prenevost asking for the portrait I drew of her in, I think, the 2nd or 3rd grade. Now I have come back to my roots, so to speak, and here are some of my recent portraits, both "Traditional" and "Creative." You will also see some pet portraits here.
I might be holding some sort of drawing or holiday portrait whatever, so keep checking this page for details!


ALL PORTRAITS ARE COMMISSIONS. IT USUALLY DEPENDS ON THE SIZE OF THE CANVAS. $450. and up.
I also do portraits in charcoal and pastel. PLEASE CALL to schedule a portrait. (360) 393-3569.
Leave a message and I will call you back.

Zaena   oil on canvas 2011

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Traditional portrait of my beautiful daughter.















PLEASE CALL to schedule a portrait. (360) 393-3569.
Leave a message and I will call you back.

Lynn as the Wind

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Lynn is the first new friend I made here after moving back to Washington. She is beautiful all by herself, but she is always with her little doggie babies, Cloee and Gizmo, so I decided to add them to her painting.

This is an example of the non-traditional or 'creative' portrait.

Last Trees on Earth oil on canvas

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Last Trees is a strong conceptual painting, but it is also a portrait of a beautiful Native American woman I once knew who was as strong and spiritual as her portrait. I would have liked to do a dozen portraits of her.

STORY OF A PORTRAIT
Drawing of Nuria - 1st Day

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After choosing a pose of Nuria that I took recently, I made a stretcher from 2x4s I ripped and then beveled, mitered, glued, and nailed to the size and shape I wanted. Then I stretched the canvas over it and painted on three layers of heavy gesso, letting each layer dry in between.

This is the first day of actual painting where I sketched in the placement of the head and checked the proportions on all the facial features. This is the most important phase if you want your portrait to look like the person you are painting.

Painting of Nuria - 2nd Day

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I'm still refining and correcting all the proportions of Nuria's face.
I have erased all the charcoal lines now and had many areas to correct with my smallest oil brush. I have also filled in the area where I will paint the hair. (I know Nuria has a short hairstyle now, but I am painting it the way it will be when it grows out naturally.) That's the magic of art!

Painting of Nuria - 3rd Day

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After making many more corrections, I have filled in most of the hair with layers of paint, but my major focus is on the essence of who Nuria is inside. I think of that as I paint. I always think of the feeling or concept of what I am painting while I am painting it; and somehow that feeling comes through in the end.

Nuria has beautiful skin! I am trying to capture that in this painting as well.
That's why I took so many photos by the light from the window.  I have filled in several layers of flesh tones, lip tones, and shadows in this day's work.

I normally use only 3-4 colors in all of my paintings; ultramarine blue, lemon yellow, crimson, and sometimes white. I then mix the colors I want from these primaries. I often mix and paint the tones right on the canvas.

Painting of Nuria - 4th Day

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I tried different background colors but decided on a Prussian blue for now. I don't like to work on the hair without first putting in a background layer. Then I did a little bit of touch up on the hair and blouse, and added more layers of paint to the face, keeping the texture as smooth as possible.

Nuria Portrait - 5th Day

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I had to wait a full week before the background dried. This is probably the 5th week. Meanwhile, I did considerable amount of work almost entirely on the face. Those of you who have never done portraiture would be amazed at the multitude of tones in the human skin! Reds, blues, greens, yellows, purples, and every shade from ivory to deepest brown. Every person has their own unique pallet. It's important to get it right.

Nuria Portrait - 6th Day

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As you can see, I've darkened and enriched the facial tones and adjusted the hair line sightly. I have also moved the collar away from the chin which I intended to do from the beginning. Now it doesn't conflict with the line of the jaw. I will be working on the shadows for a while
before I start to work on the eyes and eyebrows, which I've barely touched since the start. It's starting to look alive now and this makes it very exciting to paint!

Nuria Portrait - 7th Day

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I have work solely on skin tone here.

Nuria Portrait - 8th Day

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Nuria Portrait - 9th Day

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I have smoothed out the skin tone, added highlights to the hair, and dropped the right shoulder a bit.

Nuria Portriat - 10th Session

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Worked overall.

Nuria Portrait - 11th Session

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More refinement.

Nuria Portrait - 12th Session

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I erased some hair to find the left shoulder and uncovered the ear.

Nuria Portrait 13th -Session

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After filling the hair back in, I have done more refining.

Nuria Portriat -14 Session

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I finished deciding where the hair ends and have worked to add depth. I have also corrected the eyebrows.

Nuria Portrait -15th Session

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You can see the shadow under the hair and collar now. The portrait is basically finished, but I will watch as the colors dry, and add any retouching where necessary.








PLEASE CALL to schedule a portrait. (360) 393-3569.








Murphy oil on canvas board 2011

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Murphy is a wonderful loyal, loving member of my sister-in law's family who absolutely loves the water!  So I painted him in his favorite place, on a sandbar in the Gulf of Mexico.












PLEASE CALL to schedule a portrait. (360) 393-3569.
Leave a message and I will call you back.