How essential life drawing is to not only understanding the human body but perspective line and colour. It is a perfect way to practice all the skills needed in any art process. 
I was fortunate to have the lovely Freya pose throughout her pregnancy, this drawing being the final one before ‘Brodie ” was born. 
Here I experimented with using the fixed line of a sponge to send the lines beyond the figure. It was a 5min pose so concentration was key. The sponge retained the ink really well and gave a great saturation where needed. Enjoyed the process greatly.

Called to get a quote for framing the double portrait I am now working on…they were shut today! Soo wish I could share this now but need to wait as there is going to be an unveiling and I would not want to give any spoilers away before then…frustrating!

Greeted by a painted cat recently on a visit to the Alain Rouveure Tibetan gallery, in Gloucestershire.
Always loved the naughty torties, the splodges diffuse their outline but look amazing.

Getting to grips with writing a blog..check out www.lesleywildman.com …see you there.
#cats #alainrouveuregallery #painted #studio #artist #portraitartist # tortoiseshell

Back to the canvas at last…the break has done me good as I can see it all with fresh eyes. The nagging ..should I, can I and am I good enough, still hangs in the air but leaving it to one side and getting on with the tiny details of fingernails, eyes and ears.

I have had to purchase some new glasses as my bifocals close up section was too small and I spent most of the time with my head tilted back. Still all looks great now  with the new ones… except, when I put by brush in my tea instead of the water!

Still seem to be avoiding the canvas…..scared of over doing it or ruining the progress already made. 
Going for a swim with the grandchildren which will either energise me or wipe me out completely.. still, I can feel virtuous either way. Painting takes little physical effort and massive mental effort, so need to make sure the body gets some attention too..

Today there is very little space for the painting to take place. It is good to walk away sometimes and leave the process and image alone for a bit. I have come back with fresh eyes and can see the good again and know what to do with the areas that are not quite so good.
With surprise I look at my chosen colour palette.. there are only 7 colours used throughout. I have hundreds of colours but seem to reach for the same ones every time. While seemingly subconscious, this decision has made returning to a previous mixed colour very easy. This maybe the way most artist works! but I hadn’t even noticed I was doing it. 
Flesh tint (awful colour in the raw)
Light green
Ochre yellow
Vermillion red
Mars black
Ultramarine
Titanium white.
I am sure there must be a theory as to which colours are the basis of all things in painting. If you know drop me a line…

I am working on a client portrait at the moment and can only show the progress once the big unveiling has happened. So far that still looks at least a couple of months away.
I will have to post the visual stages after the event but I can for now voice the frustrations, concerns and breakthroughs that each stroke of the brush brings up.

I have known this couple for many years and without question knew they were both open to the challenges of sitting for a portrait. What I didn’t realise is how unprepared
I would be.
It soon dawned on me the responsibility you, literally, hold the in your hands to care for and value the way people perceive themselves. How do I handle their expectations while being brave enough to manage my own? 
​It all lands with the artists interpretation and skill, laying open the months of work to unknown reactions and scrutiny. An artist needs to be their own person and find themselves though their work, Picasso, Dali, Schiele  and Dadd, themselves, themselves, themselves. Daring and brash to arrogance and madness but themselves.
I need to be brave and stay true to building idea ‘I’ have of who my sitters are….through my eyes, though my story to my truth. 

This is gonna take guts. With years away from the art world, i need a powerful dialogue with myself to answer the passionate calling that seems to hover over and in me. This is my medium, this is my time to be …connected and free….a journey to me.

A few months now into my time with portrait painting,
with no job or distractions…lucky lucky me.
​
It is here that I would like to document the results, the
sketches, the photos of my new pathway to
portrait painting in words and pictures, but also the looking
and wonder of the visual world as I see it and the
fascinating surprises it can hold……See you again soon