The absence of tourist spots & landscapes as inspiration due to lack of travel & pandemic lockdowns took me to the challenging field of portrait painting. Practice & more practice are steps to acclimatize an artist to the hills & valleys of the face. Finding the right color, shade & transparency is the hard part of the fun. No hardship, not fun!My first painting is in honor of my father who passed 20 years ahead of my mom, thus I was close physically to him when both of us were younger! Tatay ( father) was affectionate, loved to play the "banduria" & a devoted family man! He valued education & I remember when I graduated with honors in accounting, he took me to the doctor's office, to "show off" that I was so embarrassed I almost disappear! Anyway during my initial attempt to paint him, I painted all the wrinkles & folds of the face which resulted in a solemn unsmiling demeanor. My sister/ critic requested to give him a gentler look so I minimized the aging effects which resulted to a portrait of my Tatay when he was younger, high cheekbones & nosel
! A salute to my " poging" (handsome) Tatay! The second painting is a reworking of my Birthday painting, fixing the eyes, sides of the face & the teeth!
I really sense the gentleness in your father and I like what you've done with your birthday portrait. Teeth are so difficult to paint and yours look very natural, as do all the shadows and highlights. Your portraits are so lovely.
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