Looks like I did a pretty poor job of cropping this image, doesn't it? But the fact is — what you see of the figure on the left is all that I drew, because I wanted to place the rest of the young man's face and body outside the picture plane. I'll tell you what I was trying to achieve with this strategy in a moment, but let's look first at the sin I committed by implementing it.

Read the rest of this post »

This is a series of charcoal drawings executed in the last few years. All works in this gallery are 18" x 24" Charcoal on Strathmore paper (some heightened with white). Included are:

• Friends Leah and Tanya in "Good Hands" (2009)
• Son Joseph and friend Kristin in "The Newlyweds" (2008)
• Friend Jay and husband Jerry in "Firekeepers" (2006)
• Daughter Rose and friend Charlie in "Game Plan" (2008)
• My husband and me in "YouTubing" (2008)
• My son and his two male ferrets in "Beautiful Boys" (2008)

Using a beta version of the not-yet-released Rodeo development platform, I created an app that allowed me to compile a portfolio of selected works and post it to the web! Click the Portfolio link (at the top of this page) to view it.

Simple Instructions

1. When you open my portfolio, you'll see is a list of works (see first gallery image). Click any item in that list to view the work, title, dimensions, and other data.
2. To navigate the portfolio, click the Forward or Back arrow — or click the Index button (identified by the red arrow in the second gallery image).

More New Links

Next to the Portfolio link are also links about me and my commission procedures.

• Portrait: Describes the kinds of references I'm willing to use for portraiture, my procedure for photographing subjects, suggestions for creating your own photo references, and the use (and possible limitations) of pre-existing photos.
• Process: Discusses the decisions that need to be made before I can give you an exact quote on a commission, my standard terms, your rights to the finished work, and a pdf of my standard Portrait Agreement.
• Prices: Lists the base prices for Charcoal and Oil portraits.
• Bio: Includes my artist's statement, exhibits, awards, and art education.

Your comments on all of this new information are welcome. And I would be very much obliged if you would let me know if you find any errors or broken links.

I was inspired to sketch our 16th President after reading Team of Rivals, Doris Kearns Goodwin's book about the political genius of Abraham Lincoln. I got the idea for the title of the piece from something Carl Sandburg said in his trilogy on the life of Lincoln.

Read the rest of this post »