the above photos document my progress on a commissioned piece that i've been working on for a client in tyler. she has a blank wall in her dining room in need of some art. she gave me a swatch of fabric that the dining room chairs are covered in for inspiration and lots of photos of her friends and family that we decided to include in the piece. because the photos i was given to work from were primarily smiling faces from the shoulders up, i had to get a little creative with the bodies and clothes (i do hope that they like what they're wearing!). this piece was different than any other that i've created before because i used paper collage, acrylic paint AND oil pastel all in one. it was also a stretch for me because i'm used to drawing/painting realistic portraits. i've trained myself to work until i get an exact likeness of the person i'm drawing. it was definitely a challenge for me not to concentrate too much on facial detail, but to go with more of an abstract representation of each person, experimenting with color and composition.
the entire piece measures 7'x4' and is broken up into three canvases.
