More on "Women of the Bible"

Those of you who follow my blog know that I've been working on a series of 11x14 paintings of the Women of the Bible.  Each time I completed a painting I shared it with my Sunday School class, because it started as the result of one of my classes.  One of the ladies of my class thought it would make beautiful cards and that she would surely buy some.  So, I thought ... "Why not?"  I have had all five of them printed into cards and have packaged them.  In each card I quoted a scripture which related to the lady in the painting.  I don't intend to make any real profit off these, but it was a project I wanted to do - I'm satisfied with it - and am glad I did it.  Who knows, it may result in something bigger than I expect.

Here's the cards:

4-1/4 x 5-1/2 notecards

Self Portraits

It has been a little over a week since I last posted…my goodness how time flies.

I’m told that in the process of learning how to paint, especially if one decides to delve into portraiture, one should practice by doing a self portrait. Before really getting into painting I often wondered why would someone do a self portrait…is it ego? I have discovered that it is a great way to practice. Your model is always handy and there is no charge for the sitting. Where can you find a better deal? I’ve gone onto artists websites and found that some of them have done several…one artist mentioned doing a self portrait at least once a month. Even the Masters have done self portraits, many of them more than one. So, if the Masters have done it, then why not me? I'm sure it can only help me hone my portraiture skills.

Sometime back I decided to give it a go and this is what I came up with…


This is my first attempt. Not very good, but my family did recognize it as me.


This one I call “Melancholia.” I did it for a challenge with the About.com painting website. The challenge was to do an expressive self portrait. I decided on this composition because I find myself in this position many times, especially when I’m studying a piece that I’m working on. Also, with the hands being such a large part of the overall composition, it gave me an opportunity to work on hands…something I’ve always had problems with. I was surprised that I did get some pretty decent feedback on it. I think its time to do another one. I could paint from photos, which I have done on many occasions and I do have some fantastic photos of people from foreign countries in their cultural dress in great poses, but I want to be able to paint from life; therefore, the self portrait.

These are both done in oil on 9x14 canvas board.

Until next time, mahalo for visiting.


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