Portrait painting

Painting for my life

Portrait painting is a lot more than simply capturing someone's likeness. For me, a successful portriat also exudes character, personality, and a bit of the person's spirit as well.
Years ago, while still a art student at the Tyler School of Art in Philadelphia, I took a summer position in Louis' Art Village in Atlantic City drawing pastel portraits right there on the boardwalk. Basically, I was expected to churn out as many completed portraits as I could in any given hour. The real trick here was capturing a likeness without fussing too much on such nuances as layering cool and warm colors or getting into any specific details outside the face. Relatively easy work that paid well, but ideally felt totally unsastisfying to me as a young artist. It lacked the personal depth I craved and said barely a thing about the person sitting there before me. But, such fast renderings of so many faces also taught me a great deal too, benefitting me enormously throughout my career.