DEC 2018 MEETING:

Jean Everson Demo, Art Swap, Holiday Party

Thursday, Dec. 20, 2018

NorthStar members arrived early to snatch up those free and bargain-priced items from other artists. Studios are now cleaned out or restocked – recycling at its most creative!

Holiday treats were shared before, during, and after the demonstration by Jean Everson.

As a professional photographer, Jean Everson knew the importance of lighting in a portrait. She carried this photographic awareness into her portrait painting.

As a member of Old Town Artists, Jean has practiced figure drawing and portraits for many years. Her portraits are characteristically expressive, emphasizing light and shadow. At the NorthStar demo Jean began drawing the face of her subject, Eric making measurements with her 2B pencil.

Then, using her favorite Silver Brushes, she mixed cobalt blue with a little alizarin crimson and yellow, and, squinting, she studied the light source and painted the shadows on Eric’s face, placing a little red on the nose and cheeks.

Next, she painted the shape of his hair with burnt sienna and yellow ochre. Placing purple shadows under his eyebrows, she emphasized, “Be bold in the beginning!” Jean darkened the hair by mixing payne’s grey with burnt sienna and painting over the hair shape with “scribbly” brush strokes.

Jean Everson’s expressive approach to portraits provided a complementary balance to the demos given by previous portrait artists, proving that there are as many styles as there are artists.