His royal chubby cheeks

I'm a quiet Royalist at heart and it was only a matter of time before the newest Prince's precious locks, rosy cheeks and cupid bow lips became the subject of pencil and paintbrush. The top image is in Winsor and Newton watercolours on watercolour paper. The bottom image is my usual Derwent on sketch paper.

As the Royals are pressed to modernise their image, I have often wondered how this shift will influence the portraits of future Regal posers. Is it possible that non-traditional art mediums may make an appearance in re-branding the Royal Family as an accessible, inclusive and humanistic entity? I will be interested to see over the years ahead, if opinion of the Royal Family bears any correlation with their representation in artistic form. 

The mystery bonny babe of brisbane

A few years ago during a Mother’s Day trip to a hidden antique shop in the Sunshine Coast hinterland, I came across a wicker basket of old photographs. Each photo (a little larger than a credit card) was sealed individually in a plastic sandwich bag and marked at the attractive price of $5. Along with my raspberry scones and tea I purchased two prints, both of chubby babies donned in the day’s attire which no doubt reflected the wealth of the families to which they were born. These little babes in their sandwich bags have been stowed in my pyjama draw for some time now, with the promise of a sketch in the future; a promise finally fulfilled this week.

I chose the younger of the two babies as the image was less tarnished by time and the baby’s subtle smile seemed to offer a slightly rebellious nod towards the stern poses and expressions more familiar to portrait photography of that era. I’ve only offered up a modest sketch in Derwents using a minimal pallet and coarse pastel sketch paper to keep in tune with the simplicity of the original image. Drawing in such a small scale presented a challenge as Derwent colours refuse to sharpen to a fine point. I admit to cheating a little with the eyes by introducing my Progresso Graphite pencils for extra detail. 

Drawing portraits is quite an intimate process which is made easier by knowing a little background on the subject’s personality or quirks. Of course this would not be the case for this young sitter from the past, however a little research did unfurl a small narrative behind this baby. 

Queen Street Brisbane in the late 1800s

The photograph was taken by prominent Brisbane-based photographers John and Thomas Matherson who owned Matherson & Co which was based in now popular Queen Street in central Brisbane between 1870 and 1889. Although the photo did not come with a date, I estimate it to have been taken in the early 1880s based on similar photography presentation of the time. This era saw Brisbane grow as a commercial city with trams and the world’s first publicly available electric street lighting. As such, our baby likely came from a family employed in architecture, engineering or commerce. Originally Ipswich was marked out to be Queensland’s capital which is interesting given Matherson & Co moved their business there in 1890; narrowly escaping the Queen Street floods in 1893. The photograph itself is known as a Carte as it was printed from a glass negative and mounted onto cardboard and then produced in sets of twelve to make them convenient for swapping or sending overseas. Possibly there are 11 more of my bonny baby across the world somewhere. This style of photography was popular with the middle classes and represented one of the first times babies could be photographed with greater ease and in greater clarity. New camera technology and a faster shutter speed had finally caught up with baby’s restless nature. Subjects also started to be photographed with props that reflected their wealth, hobbies or personality. Our bonny baby is clearly holding a treasured toy but as it’s obscured by a chubby hand I can’t determine what it is (though most probably a small boat, animal or doll made of tin). Something else which leaves me pondering is the baby’s gender. Both boys and girls were dressed identically during this period – lace, flowers, bows and all. Unfortunately this would complicate things in the search to uncover the complete identity of this little one, but I do admire how the attire of the 1880s was more about practicality than signifying a rigid gender division.

That’s where the search ends for now. A small sketching project has momentarily brought to the fore a little life from long ago which will only ever be known as the mystery bonny baby from Brisbane. Perhaps serendipitously in 130 years’ time, my baby portrait from the early 1980s will be found protected in a sandwich bag in a wicker basket in the nook of an antique shop for $5, purchased by an inquisitive artistic over raspberry scones and tea.    

A lucky find in the year 2112

Finally back to a sharp pencil

It's been a while! If only I could say I'd been bogged down with all things creative and adventurous! Not to be. My day job (of which the only art opportunities are brief moments of sketching with cheap biros during lethargic teleconferences) has been demanding most of my time. I've really only just started to sharpen my pencils very recently when my mum bought me a beautiful wooden box of Windsor and Newton watercolours as a birthday gift. Very lucky! My first memory of watercolours was at the age of 6, experimenting with giant tear drops of colour on thick, textured paper. Trying to paint a flower, I was fascinated at how the bright pink and vivid purples would bleed into each other like they were trying to help you create your masterpiece. I think watercolours are good for kids as they are easy to clean up and prefer artists who aren't self conscious. With watercolours there's no going back once you commit to a stroke, the colour sucks into the welts of the paper and claims its residency irrespective of whether its placement was intended. You forfeit the usual control you have as an artists when you can't just add a layer of white paint to hide an error. It's been a fun process and I'll use future posts to share hints, tips and tools.

       

Another teleconference, another doodle.

A work in progress



One of the things that has really helped me to progress as an artist is seeing a painting's transformation over time. It's a great way to see how colours are layered and blended and which parts of the portrait are worked on first. I've included progress shots of one of my most recent portraits. It was a really tricky one given that the girl's skin comprises of two different tones; one pink (the face) and one yellow (the hands). It was also a challenge to really capture her anxiety and the movement in the picture. Loads of fun though.





Painting light

I've been doing a series of portraits using images by one of my favourite photographers Jill Greenberg. She has a certain way of using light that is a key signature of her work and is so inspiring to paint. The light is so intense that I use a perfect white in places; no softening with the usual blue or yellow hues. It adds a harshness to the finished piece which is why I think the images can be so confronting. They're very honest and very clean. She also exaggerates the features of her subjects in post-production which serves to emphasise the emotion; just perfect for painting! The human face is also recognised not by the shape of its features, but by the way our eye perceives the light and tone reflected off those features, This is why light is so important when painting a portrait and why it's been such a joy to work from Jill's photos.

- oil on canvas

Structure through colour

This image is a little tighter than previous works I've done in this style. None of the colours were mixed, they were simply applied direct from the tube onto the canvas in a deliberate but complimentary way. It's a fast technique and the obvious, thick application of colour literally builds the portrait from the canvas and gives it life. It's been an enjoyable process and a major stress reliever!

- oil on canvas

Portrait of a young boy