This need to paint from my imagination is a recurrent pattern that pops in my head from time to time. In the past, I have tried to paint a few of these portraits, but the results were always disappointing to say the least.

Painting from your imagination is an incredibly free enterprise, but it comes at a price. You don't have a model in front of you to guide your drawing and your painting. You got to have a huge knowledge of portraiture to be able to carry a beautiful imaginary person.

Hermes, Oil on Canvas, 2007

Since childhood, I am fascinated by the astonishing beautiful art of ancient Grece. What makes it eternal, beautiful, ethereal? Looking closer at theses works, one can see that nobody looks like that.

On my free time, I am reading the biography of Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson. The big thing that I have learned from this excellent book, other than Steve Jobs' legendary mercurian temper, is to make things simple: less is better.

Looking again at the Venus, what do you see? Strait nose, even proportions, perfect features, you see simplicity.

Mystery, Sepia on paper, 16" X 14", 2014

On the easel

I am currently working on three portraits. With beauty and simplicity in mind, I chose three words to create from.

Mystery Clarity Femininity

Each words is now a theme that give me inspiration for a woman's portrait. I don't know why, but I can't seem to paint a man from my imagination.

Mystery

The starting point for Mystery is the Botticelli Venus and smoky wavy brush strokes. I chose her hair to be orange-red and the background the be of the complementary green.

In the color study, the bright hair colorcauses the skin tone to be a bit too cool. In the final work I will have the background a little less high in chroma (high color purity). The background will also serve for the skin tone. Remember: to unify and simplify.

I also will put a strong cast shadow to bring some warmth in this portrait.

Sylver point workshop, after Leonardo da Vinci, 18" x 14", 2006

Femininity

I would love to use a woman in a da Vinci work. I don't want to use Mona Lisa; it's too obvious. I am a little bit afraid of this idea, because I know how hard it is to do Leonardo's work.

I want lots of flower in this portrait. However, I have no specific colors in mind for now. Maybe a low chroma portrait for this one, with emphasis on the drawing.

Clarity

I know that Clarity will be a woman painted from profile. When thinking of clarity, the color white comes to my mind with some geometrical patterns. I also want to explore icons seen in Orthodox religious art.

To be continued.....

steve jobs