Little face paintings

I’m back at home in my studio for a few days between trips to Ireland*. I’m trying to make the most of this studio time, but I haven’t decided on my next big project yet. I’ve lost steam on the two paintings series (Munich and Tuscany) I’ve been working on. Perhaps I just need a break, or perhaps I’m just not meant to paint in series. Or maybe I’ve just chosen the wrong subject matters. Whatever it is, I’m trying not to let it get in the way of my creative output, so I’ve shifted gears to a completely different subject: faces.

I bought ten little (15 cm square) canvases on my last trip to the art store, and I’ve decided to use them to play around with imaginary faces. While I’ve painted many portraits over the years, I rarely work without a model or photograph. With this new project I’m trying to challenge myself to create faces from only my imagination. It’s freeing to not have to worry about whether the painting resembles the subject, since there is no subject. It’s also fun to play around with more abstract facial features than I’m used to depicting.


* You can read about my adventures in Ireland on my other blog.

6 thoughts on “Little face paintings”

  1. I love artists who do series of things – especially small things. I keep threatening to try that myself but really never have. I must focus and try because the outcomes are always so wonderful. These close up faces are mysterious and tell stories – I love masks, they remind me of masks. Happy to find you at Leah’s – makes it so easy to click over and see what you’re doing!

    Reply
  2. I love these partly because I’ve been trying my hand at some imaginative portraits and more abstract portraits. These are bold and speak volumes even though they are small pieces.

    Reply

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.