Mischievous

"Mischievous" 6x6 oil painting on board, ©Laura Gable (not for sale)

In honor of Father's Day a few days ago, I thought I would repost this painting I did of my Dad a few years ago. He is now 84 years young, and very active and healthy. He and my mom are quite the world travelers, and recently came back from a trip to Paris and the wine region of France last year. Astonishingly, they went to the little cafe that Van Gogh painted -- luminous golds and yellows in the outdoor cafe, against the deep blues of the night sky. It is in Arles and quite the tourist destination. Ah, a dream of mine to go there.

This study was based on a photo of my Dad. He had a mischievous look on his face, as a small kitten had curled up and fallen asleep in the crook of his arm. I've been hankering to do another companion piece of my mom, so will see if I have some good source material to do that soon. 

Family Time

This is a series of portraits I did in 2012 of a very handsome local family, which I realize I had not posted back then. The small paintings were 6x6 in size and the larger was 9x12. The portraits were all done based on photography - I had only met 2 of the people (and the dog ;-). The client provided a plethora of photos yet not all were of the best quality, nor were they all of the specific pose we were after. It is really difficult to create a face from elements in different photos -- especially if you've not met the person. I wouldn't advise it. In fact, if I was to do this over again, I would request a sitting with each person and factor the sittings into the price of the portrait. 

I do enjoy the finished quality of the paintings with the juicy loose brush strokes. I had just come back from a workshop by Dreama Tolle Perry and studied her bright use of color and transparent paints. Her influence is very evident in these paintings. 

He had a lively personality from the photos "Lassez-Fair" 6x6 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

The youngest son, 6x6 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

The son who was in the military, 6x6 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

The daughter, 6x6 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

"Piercing" The same daughter (in a different pose), 6x6 oil on board, ©Laura Gable

The fun loving and very driven parents, and a sweet old labrador (SAM?), 9x12 oil on board, ©Laura Gable