Ruth Soller » Blog

Josh was an intense young man who modeled for Dan Beck's workshop on Controlling Edges and Shapes in oil portraits. Josh, who has a career as a film maker, was able to take on varying personas and remain focused for long poses. I began this piece at the end of a three day workshop; then completely reworked it later in my studio. I like the intense expression on Josh's face and the way I have begun to use a variety of edges from soft to sharp along with a variety of major shapes in the composition. I am working on transitions from warm to cool color temperatures as well as gradations of values from light to dark.