So how long does it take to paint a portrait? People ask me this question all the time, and my usual answer is that it varies, depending on the size, number of people, and complexity of the clothing and background. I like to allow about two months for a large (20x24 or bigger) single portrait - maybe more for multiple figures. Because oils take a while to dry, and also because I work on a painting in layers, I tend to have several paintings going at once. If one gets to a point where it needs to sit and dry for awhile, I'll move on to something else. A head study, which is usually 8x10 or 11x14, might take as little as a week and a half to two weeks. The following painting has been my latest portrait project: a head study of my father-in-law, Dale.
This portrait was started from life, and there was wonderful energy to the preliminary stages of the painting. With his curly hair, glasses, round cheeks and handlebar mustache, Dale was a wonderful model, and a great joy to paint. He sat for about 45 minutes, and I was able to lay in my composition, working on an 8x10 linen panel, toned with a wash of burnt sienna and ultramarine blue. I was able to quickly map the tilt of his head, the values from the natural light coming through the window, and his expression. At this point, I wasn't too concerned with color. Even though the beginning stage looks rather rough, it was invaluable for helping me study things closely, so that if I did have to rely on photography later, I'd be able to remember important values and colors from our initial sitting.
We didn't have much more time than that to work, so I snapped some photos of Dale, and took them home to studio, where I was able to continue working once the block-in (or first layer) had dried. At this point, I made some changes to my drawing, especially in regards to the shape and tilt of his head - I felt he looked better with his chin raised higher.
During the next day's session I was able to start laying in details and making the colors much truer to life.
During my final painting session, I added some final touches of detail, looked for values that needed to be either brought up or toned down, and cleaned up the background but decided to leave it still somewhat painterly. Here is the final product!
"Dale" - 10x8 - oil on linen glued to board
I hope you've enjoyed seeing a painting's progress from start to finish.
Thanks,
Anna Rose Bain
http://www.annasblankcanvas.com/
