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For this piece, I’m sharing four steps from my oil painting process on clayboard. While the subjects happen to be a mom and child, my focus was really on capturing the warmth of late-summer light and the baby’s quiet curiosity.

I began with a very light, loose graphite gesture sketch on a dry toned Ampersand clayboard. I laid in thin, but not diluted darks to anchor the composition. From there, I introduced mid warm tones and skin tones, gradually building form. I finished by moving back and forth between lights and darks, adding thicker passages in the illuminated areas and scratching in texture for variation. Clayboard has a way of creating a luminous effect in person, and it’s truly lovely to work with.

This quick study explores the effects of indoor fluorescent light using a complementary palette of violets and ochres. I was drawn to the young woman’s pose and the generous bulk of her clothing. In hindsight, I wish I’d kept the background looser and suggested the library only through hints of colour, another reminder that there’s always something to learn.

Still, it was a joy to paint.

I love to paint the figure, and when I paint large, the face can sometimes be a real challenge, capturing it without making it look like a specific person, yet still creating a presence the viewer can relate to.

I recently signed up for a portrait-drawing course with Kenzo at Love Life Drawing, and it’s helping tremendously. The idea is to work from large to small: first get the big shapes right, then methodically build in the smaller planes, and finally the nuances of light and dark. There’s no jumping straight into drawing noses, lips, and eyes. It’s a great course, and if you want to learn to draw heads, faces, or even figures, I highly recommend it. You can get more info about it here. Lovelifedrawing.

I’m currently working on a 24×26” figure painting, and this is a detail of the head and face I painted using the methods I’ve been learning. The reclined head, slightly turned away at the chin, is one of the hardest angles to draw and paint. I’m happier with the rendering than the paint application, but that’s something to keep working on with the next painting.

I’m also sharing a few exercises from the course to show you the process. You start by drawing a simple sphere. Then you identify the angle of the head and add a line around the sphere where the eyebrows wrap across the face. Next, you place a centerline to capture the tilt and direction of the head. From there, you indicate where the major “bulges” live: the mouth, eye sockets, base of the nose, and chin. The methods are a concise combination of the Loomis and Riley approaches.

I’ve been practicing every day, and the time invested has been absolutely worth it.

If this intrigues you and you’d like more information, or if you have other ideas, send me a note or comment below. I’d love to chat.

I’m sharing a new piece today, painted in oil on clayboard. I was really drawn to the mood, the colours, the quiet moment of this subject and asked if I could take a few reference shots. Something about the atmosphere around her just felt right.

What I find interesting about this surface is how the oils behave on it. The final effect almost emulates gouache: that opaque, water-based paint known for its velvety matte finish. Even by mixing a medium with linseed oil into my paints, the oil paint dried quickly and the result was similarly matte. I’m enjoying this surface and plan to explore more.

Let me know what you think, or if you have any questions about my process. I'm happy to share ideas with you.