Self-Portraits, Making Aging Choices

How often do artists think about creating a self-portrait? 

Either we need a photograph of ourselves for publication 

or would like to try a self-portrait in our chosen medium.

For years I have used this photo as it seemed to fit catalog

 requirements and filled the aged or aging look I was going after. 

 I tried variations of my photograph.

It seems you need either a photograph or 

to look in a mirror to create a self-portrait

 Over the years I have collected many magazine pages 

and thought I'd make use of some in a paper self-portrait. 

35 by 30 inches 

 A detail shows paper is glued onto Pellon and then sparely stitched.

Several years ago I had started an alphabet series that may never be finished.

Using my old photograph I repeated it with variations

  creating 9 small quilts. 

These 9 were then stitched onto window screening.

This detail of the center square was created with free-motion machine embroidery

The final piece was titled Variations on 'P' (for portrait)

45 by 39 inches

 A few years ago the New Image Artists decided to have 

a self-portrait themed show.

 I worked on the idea of A Page From My Sketchbook

 Embroidered and quilted, A Page From My Sketchbook is 25 by 23 inches

 I had this artwork juried into Pfaff's Self-Portrait Embroidery Exhibit, 

held in France

 A detail of 'Art of Embroidery, with Apologies to Magritte'

Painted, embroidered and quilted, 25 by 17 inches

 After all the years using the same image for most catalogs and articles 

and although I hate the thought of aging,  

I started thinking that I should use a more up to date photo.

Spencer, our grandson took this picture.

                                                 

 Alexandra, our granddaughter, took this one 

while we were having lunch one day.

Just because I wanted to try a changing look, 

I drew a couple of self-portraits taken from photographs. 

 I'm calling this pair  '35 YEARS'

They are graphite and 12 by 12 inches.

(And, what a difference 35 years makes on a body.) 

Not sure I want to create any current self-portraits.

I still haven't solved the photo I might use for publication, problem, yet.

I may stick to my old  hat and dark glasses image.

Drawing, colored pencil still-life

Choosing to do a drawing for a Christmas gift 

I began by buying an unusual little vase, about 9 inches high, 

from the Glen Echo Potters 

when they had their holiday sale at the Lab School.

 I took several photos trying to decide on a small grouping

 It shouldn't be but it is always surprising, 

for me to see how much colors change 

with different backgrounds. 

I wanted to work from life and I knew I would not have constant light

 during the day and probably not at night, as well. 

 I decided to use the darker background and a white base 

so there would be some reflected white on the objects

 I was using a high texture heavy substrate so a lot of white

 came through even though I kept my pencils very sharp.

 It is quite evident, here, with the texture of the paper showing through.

 Even after using some blending much of the papers texture was evident.

 I didn't want to fill the background with dark gray so just gave a hint of that color.

The title is Red, Yellow, and Blue.

 Since I was unhappy with the substrate's texture

in that first drawing, 

I decide to try the same still life on a smoother surface. 

Using Bristol Board this time, thinking it was a lot smoother, 

I began drawing. 

Soon I saw that it, too had a texture that I didn't want for my colored pencils. 

At this point I decided I liked the first drawing better 

so gave it as the gift along with the vase.

During the second drawing,

I had to switch apples as the first one had become

 soft over the week or two I was drawing. 

For all, but the apples I used Prismacolor pencils.  

I used Polychromos only on both apples and today used

mineral oil to blend the pencil lines on this apple.

 I still see so much of the paper's texture in the rest of the drawing. 

This image appears brighter in this photo than it really is. 

Now I want to go back to my favorite drawing paper

and try another still life.