Baby Aubrey -Portrait in Oil

by Lisa Larrabee

Aubrey

Oil  6"x6"

artist Lisa Larrabee

My first baby portraits were of my twin boys (New Day).  The painting was small because I wanted to portray them life-size.  I have since painted other tiny baby portraits and they give me such pleasure to try and capture their precious little faces.  These moments pass by so quickly, it is important to take the opportunity to hold onto them.

Changing Perspective

by Lisa Larrabee

Bull Skull study I

Bull Skull study II

I frequently take the opportunity to draw alongside my students.  It helps me practice my drawing skills as well as provide an "extended demo" that students can refer to as their drawings progress.

When It All Comes Together

by Lisa Larrabee

to Love
9" x 12"
Oil & Cold Wax on Panel
artist Lisa Larrabee

Over the years I have picked up a variety of techniques that I felt would help me visually manifest the ideas within my Figurative Landscape paintings.  This summer I created paintings where multiple techniques came together in a way that felt fluid and natural.  It has been a very energizing experience.

Drawing General to Specific: Graphite vs Charcoal

by Lisa Larrabee

These are stages of a still life drawing that I did in graphite (pencil).  To begin, I lightly toned the entire drawing surface (white paper) with graphite.  Once basic shape relationships were in place I erased out the light shapes.  I built values using subtle hatch marks without blending.

Draw What You See General to Specific

by Lisa Larrabee

It is easy to say that you should draw what you see when your goal is to draw with accuracy.  However, it takes practice to truly observe the shapes, values and relationships as they are and not how we perceive them to be.

Paint Fearlessly! Exploring Cold Wax Medium

by Lisa Larrabee

Longing
Oil & Cold Wax 

12" x 16"
artist Lisa Larrabee

I always try to challenge myself with each new painting.  Still, there is always the thought at the back of my mind that reminds me that I don't want to screw it up.  I decided that I needed to create a painting where I could play and try out ideas with without the fear of failing.  I picked up an old painting demo that I wasn't attached to and jumped in.

The purpose of this demo was to block in the values in simple basic shapes.  I loved the light on the portrait, but I had no plan to develop the painting.  It was the perfect piece to play with.

Paint with Realism and Expression

by Lisa Larrabee

A Quiet Reminder

Oil  18"x 24"
artist Lisa Larrabee


It has been a constant challenge for me to paint with... paint.  I would load up my brush with paint, lay it down on the surface with bold intention and then eventually smear it around until it was smooth and blended.  

This past summer, I took a workshop with an incredible artist, Henry Yan.  He told me my palette was starving.  I added more paint.  Would you believe that more paint on your pallet can translate to more paint on your painting?  It sounds too simple.