Following through

Generally I write once a month but I'm feeling brave. And you all have been so supportive of the good times, seems only fair - and honest - to let you in on the anxious times.

At the beginning of January I posted about a daunting project, that I had avoided starting. It was totally outside my comfort zone because... it's a portrait... of a dark skinned woman... with bold coloration... and flowers!

I'm pleased to say it's done and has been submitted to the American Women Artists upcoming show at Steamboat Art Museum. I don't know if it will be accepted, but I feel good just finishing it, because this one had me doubting myself more than anything I've done. And while there were times when it was agony to work on, every issue resolved was a thrill.

Zsa Zsa Reigns ©2019 Dorothy Lorenze

The Steamboat exhibit is part of AWA's initiative to increase exposure for women artists by holding 25 exhibitions in museums over 25 years. And I'll tell you - the collected work has been fantastic. Take a look at last year's Rockwell Museum show here. Multiple paintings have been  purchased for permanent collections through these shows, advancing AWA's mission to see more work by female artists in museums nationwide.

Needless to say, it would be quite an honor to be included. For now I'm glad that I took on the challenge, made the deadline and of course, learned a lot.

One of the things I learned is that I should have done a poster study! This is a lesson I keep learning, and unfortunately, forgetting. When I'm in a hurry it feels like an added/extaneous step, but it could have answered big questions on a small scale and likely saved time in the long run. A poster can help to figure out values: how dark the shadow area of the face should be and how light the cheek highlight is compared to other light areas. It really is all relative. You can see some examples of poster studies I have done here.

I did do a quick painted sketch of this model from life, but I wasn't happy with it. Fortunately she allowed me to take a photo. Zsa Zsa's pose was powerful and haunting and her expression seemed fitting for American Women Artists' goal to inspire, celebrate and encourage women in the visual arts. I'll let you know if they agree.

Closer to home my work will be in Art Show: Bedford (in Bedford, NY) which opens this weekend. Stop by if you are in the area. There will be artwork by local artists (Laura Gould and Rich Alexander to name a few) as well as NYC artists and work curated by several galleries. I'm happy to be included. There is always good art and the proceeds benefit several local community organizations.

Blind Date is one of the paintings I will exhibit. It's a cheeky painting that came about after placing two vintage ceramic pieces together on a shelf. They just looked like they should have a relationship! It's a quirky pairing but I find these characters endearing and hope you do too. Come by and say hello and warm your heart with some art! Our bitter cold weather should be improving soon.

Blind Date ©2018 Dorothy Lorenze

Thanks so much for joining me on my art journey. I hope you find this newsletter interesting. Please feel free to forward to anyone who might enjoy it. You can also look back on past posts by clicking on this link.