Inspired to reveal

I paint models every Friday with members of the Akron Society of Artists, for the joy of portraiture and to build my watercolor skills for taking commissions. ("Comission" is a nice artsy way of saying "Painting your portrait for good money.")

Last Friday, I painted A. and am fairly happy to have captured her likeness and sweet spirit. This time, I have backed off the shadows and her features seem a bit lost. The current challenge is to deepen the shadow values without getting it to look like dirt or bruises. A shadow on skin should still be luminous. This eludes me.

I will continue to work on it this Friday, but only for the first 20 min. sitting. Then I will move on to paint from another angle.

About this blog:

I am obeying an inner prompting to spread salt and light a little farther. I am choosing to open the journal of my journey in this web log. No longer will I record my progress in a sketchbook.

The name "Alabaster Path" reflects an honored act of beauty poured out with abandon:

"A woman came to Jesus with an alabaster flask of very costly annointing oil, and she poured it on his head as he was dining. But when His disciples saw it, they were indignant, saying 'Why this waste? This oil might have been sold for a year's wages and given to the poor!' ... He said to them 'Why burden this woman with false guilt? She has done a good work. The poor will always be with you, but you will not always have me. She has lavishly poured this oil in preparation for my burial ... wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her.'" Matthew 26:7-13 condensed and combined with John 12:1-8 and embellished just a tad from the King James Version.

Suffering is a part of life, but it mustn't eclipse beauty... ever.