Process For "With His Other Woman"
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Frank asked me to paint his portrait with his bike. I originally said no. I did not want to paint his portrait. After a while, I decided maybe I will paint his picture. After a little more time, I said ok, I will paint the picture. But, I am going to do it big. Really big. Big would be a new challenge, because I had been doing tiny celtic painting for a while prior. Also, I was going to do it in oil paint, since it was years (20+) that I have used oil paint at all. I kept all my oils from all that time ago and maybe it was time to use them. He sent me a photo.
I went to the store and found the biggest canvas I could find, which was 5' x 4' and proceeded to pencil in the outlines. This was not too detailed--Going into this painting I thought I would throw some paint on the canvas, have something very abstract, and be done with it.
Somewhere between the first photo and the image below, Frank said "I want the handle bars changed. I want the sissybar changed, and I want the thing on my head changed to what I have now and not what the picture is."
Right.
Send me photos.
Not in 3 weeks. Now. I am doing it now.
So I had to look on line for images of handlebars at the correct angle to get the gist of things, and eventually, he sent me pictures.
Now everything is re-penciled, the stage is set, and I'm ready to roll. I'm trying to remember everything from all those years ago. I literally have no idea what I'm doing. Besides, I'm just throwing some paint on a canvas to get a semblance of a portrait and it doesn't matter, does it?
Background first, right?
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So far so good. I kept to the colors here and did all of this part on the log cabin first. I'm not taking much time on it, and I am definitely not putting a lot of thought into it. It's still going to be somewhat abstract at this point.
Now this is where it gets interesting, because I've just started on the wood part of the log cabin. This was also the point that changed my entire perspective. As insignificant as this seems, it was actually huge. I'm still going through this like it's supposed to be abstract. I painted that piece of wood (dark brown, middle, top), loosely based on the original image, stepped back, saw some detail that I was not expecting, and thought... wait a minute. There is far more to this painting than I anticipated. This is when the entire scope of the painting changed. Nobody, not even I was expecting what was to come...
Big breath here, Deb. Ok. Let's do it.
Well. Alrighty then!
That was maybe 2 or 3 or 4 weeks later....
And still, I'm guessing, because I still have no idea what I'm doing. I'm making it all up as I go. Now what? Top to bottom I guess.
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At this point, I started to get the hang of it. I've also started moving from section to section in the painting, penciling in additional details here and there, and working on other areas so I can let the paint dry.
I forgot where I was putting my hand sometimes and made a big mess of things.
I thought about the tank a lot, because it was super special. I held off on even touching paint to it until I was good and ready.
Well there's that. And I'm happy with it. At this point, I'm wearing paint daily. It's on my hands, probably in my hair. Definitely on a number of T-shirts. That's ok. I'm making something happen.
I started a facebook group so I could upload all these pictures--there are hundreds--because people are really starting to appreciate this process and they are turning into a huge support group for when I get really frustrated at what's not going right. They are also giving me valuable feedback and pointers for when I mess up, which is a lot of times during this painting. I'm deep into this and they are providing fresh perspectives. So, this is beginning to turn into something really special.
The Tank
That looks neat, but the tank is supposed to be black, not blue. Needs more work. I toned it down a little and started adding details.
At this point I have started asking Frank to see his bike in person. He's not having it because he's busy. I need more detailed images of the things I'm going to be working on soon. Like the engine and transmission.
I started this late in November or early December. At this point, it's probably late January or Feburary. I told people it would be done by April or May. I also discovered Art Prize in Grand Rapids Michigan. I told people I was going to put it in the show. Nobody believed me. I got some flack. I didn't care. I was on a mission, now, and this wasn't for Frank anymore. By the way, at this point, I'm _still_ having trouble getting the pictures of his bike, so I am looking at other bikes from on-line. I even had a friend bring his over so I could look at his and take pictures for reference, even though his was a softail and Frank's is a Dyna. But it's looking good and I'm happy with it. By the way, because I was using so many different photos (30+) I started making up reflections as I went, based on what I had been able to produce from the original photo.
There were a few people who kept telling me I didn't need to put in all the details. Well that's not the way this is rolling here. It needs the detail. This is right around the time I decided I needed a violin, too. I did get one. For real.
Yuck. I couldnt get his face right, so I went on-line again to look at other images of painted faces to see how other painters tackled the problem of faces. There was a _LOT_ of trial and error in his face. A lot of painting and removing paint and repainting. Eventually, I got the gist of that, too. At this point, it's him, but oddly, he looks like every other biker, too...
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This is basically how I laid down all the color.
Then I blended it.
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So now it's late March, and I have registered for Art Prize. I still have yet to get in to a venue there. I have doubters in my group, still. I'm on the final leg of this race after all the trials and errors, and I'm feeling pretty darn good about this. I figured out how to do a lot.
At this point, I am doing shadows for the grass underneath and infront of the bike. One of the members of my facebook group, who is an Indian Motorcycle guy through and through, was teasing me about how this was now finished, because it even has a giant oil leak. Ha Ha, John. You're next.
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By the way, that front wheel with 40 spokes was murder.
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By the way, that's John, and I'm not done yet. Don't tell him. It's a secret.
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