Mary Marriner

His Majesty #3

classicportraits — Tue, 14 Feb 2012 14:41:25 +0000

Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone! I hope you are surrounded by the ones you love this day!

The Lion continues to grow out of the velour paper in this installment. I have been adding more details on the facial planes to give it more form. Also, I have begun to work on his magnificent mane. Step, by step he is looking more majestic.

I am also working on several other projects which I will be sharing with you. I have been taking an online class with a very talented artist named Johannes Vloothius on painting landscapes. It has been years since I attempted one, but I am looking forward to giving it a try. We all need to apply the new information we learn, don’t we? I hope you are enjoying some creative time too!

Lion in progress #2

classicportraits — Wed, 08 Feb 2012 20:45:05 +0000

Wow…Finally I have my computer back! It gets a bit scary when you think you might lose some important stuff. Fortunately, I do pay a monthly fee for a back-up online, and I now know it is worth every penny!

So, on with the creation of the lion. In the second phase of my painting, I filled in some more of the highlights and blocked in more definition of the ears. The face is starting to take more shape and definition as the planes are more defined on the nose area and the sides of his head. I also decided it was a good time to begin adding some background to define his outline and where his magnificent mane would be. Lions are so regal, and I wanted to have him looking like a king. I also decided that the piece would be monochromatic for the most part.

Hope you enjoy!

The best laid plans….

classicportraits — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 20:29:02 +0000

Have you ever noticed when you have a great idea…like posting pictures of your work in progress…something comes along to interrupt the process?? Well, it seems that my computer has other plans…..Like taking a break from life! We turned it off the other day because of storms in the area, and it decided that it would refuse to come back on. (sigh) Needless to say, it is making a trip to the “tech doctor” for an evaluation.

Don’t you just love these modern, somewhat helpful things that seem to have a mind of their own at times? So, please bear with me for a brief (I hope) time, and the next installment will be up soon.

Blessings! …..and be creative!!

Mary

Lion Painting…step by step

classicportraits — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 00:07:19 +0000

I decided I would share with you the process of my Lion painting. I began with a photo which I found on a great website that has lots of reference photographs, and I often go there when I don’t have one that will work for my idea. The site is wetcanvas.com and it is a wonderful resource.

I printed out a copy of the photo and began with a light sketch transfer. True to myself, I always begin with the eyes. I suppose that’s because the eyes are the window to the soul and where you see life. Once I captured the correct expression, I began working on the other areas of the face adding beginning layers of color and mapping out the highlights and ear shapes.

This painting was done on velour paper with soft pastels and pastel pencils. I really like the velour paper for doing animals as it gives a unique softness to the fur…almost making it touchable.

More on this painting in a few days. Be blessed!

Getting started in 2012

classicportraits — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 16:27:16 +0000

Wow…Where did 2011 go?? The year seemed to fly past and I didn’t accomplish nearly as much as I had hoped. Well, I plan to change that! My focus is to create more art, because that is a gift that was given to me and it feeds my soul. However, there are the dailies to be dealt with on an ongoing basis. I keep hearing “simplify” in my brain and I know that it is a direction my life needs to take. So, every day, I will do something to head in that direction. I know that excess “stuff” around me causes me to lose focus and it hangs over me like a lead weight. The plan is to slowly work my way through the house and clear out all the unnecessary items….while I also put more emphasis on my creative endeavors. Sounds good doesn’t it? But, it will be a struggle to keep “life” from interfering. Focus! Focus! Focus!

I wish us all a new year filled with the fulfillment of our dreams…or, at least the reality of heading in that direction!

Be blessed!

Mary

New posts to come soon!

classicportraits — Fri, 24 Jun 2011 17:25:31 +0000

I have decided to post some in-progress photos of my work so that you can see the progression of the paintings. I hope you will enjoy this. I subscribe to a blog by Lesley Harrison, my favorite pastel artist of equine portraits. Actually, all of her work is exceptional. You can find her at www.lesleyharrison.net. She often posts works-in-progress and I find it very interesting and decided to give it a try here.

Life is busy, but I will try to keep up with it just for you!