Portrait of an Old Woman Winking

This is an abstract impressionistic portrait of an old woman winking. Her face was initially sketched with a green paint pen to establish placement of the eyes, nose, mouth and creases in the skin. Yellow oil pastel was used to fill in additional creases and midtone shadows. Pink oil pastel was used to block in large areas of the skin color that remains similar to a highlight. The oil pastels create a textured appearance on the acrylic gesso paper adding an interesting appearance to the under drawing. Uncovered negative spaces for darker, deeper shadows are intentionally left open as the process transitions from drawing to painting techniques. A black marker helped to darken the eyes. Shades of blue watercolor were used to fill in additional areas of shadow throughout the portrait. The water and pigment is repelled by the oil pastel and confines it to previously uncovered areas of negative space within the drawing. The drawing and painting process utilizes organized chaos as the shadows are guided into place with the brush. A degree of random shapes, gradients and flows appear to create a more organic looking portrait, similar to the way old age brings a loss of control and an inherent degradation of mental and physical faculties.