Archive for May, 2008

Portrait Art at Red Tie Studios

One of the main reasons that I had been absent from this blog can now be revealed, David and I have launched our illustrated portrait studio company website! Red Tie Studios also has its own blog where we are posting company news, in progress portraits, sketches, and studies.

I am very excited to have this done, to be filling up the portfolio with the new portraits that we are finishing up, and all of the new portraits that we will be creating in the future!

Portrait Art at RedTieStudios.com

Portrait Art Blog at RedTieStudios.com/blog

moleskin meeting

This is what happens when there are over 50 people in a meeting.

I am always slightly surprised when I go for a length of time drawing from reference images to drawing from life and the huge difference it makes in the quality of my artwork. Everything looks so much more natural and it’s much less of an effort to get things right.

I wish I had live models to draw and paint from every day.

keep it up

Gotta keep up the motivation to continue going to the gym.

savior

cooking with magic

My grandmother’s Iranian spaghetti and meat sauce recipe is incredibly intoxicating for the boys in my life. Especially after I add my own magic ingredients that always ensure an empty pot by the end of the night.

finished portrait water girl

David and I finished the portrait we were painting. I am so happy with it! I’ve been working very hard recently to improve my skills and I think this portrait is leaps and bounds ahead of all of my previous work. It is paying off. I am so excited about where my work is headed. Now, I just need to do four dozen more illustrations.

Be sure to pop over to Red Tie Studios to view it in the portfolio there and also to read more about it in the portrait blog.

hanging out with middle schoolers

In the spring semester, each 7th grade student at Dahlstrom Middle School writes and illustrates an original book to give to students in Uganda through the Books of Hope program. To help with the illustration process, the middle school asked me to come in for an all day school visit. I was able to walk the students through the process of illustration starting from simple thumbnail sketches to finished pieces of work.

It was a lot of fun to see their interests grow in illustration and sketching!

I told them of the importance of drawing daily to improve their skills and afterwards found out that several of the students had started carrying around sketchbooks since my visit. It was so much fun and such a satisfying experience.

people in seconds

People watching in purple.