A Study of...

 Is there any better way to learn than to study the masters?

These next paintings are inspirations from or copies of some of my favorite artists' work. Sometimes I copy paintings because I like the subject of the piece, sometimes because I want to imitate certain styles of brushstrokes, or sometimes because I want to experiment with similar colors or lighting.

If you look at a photograph, you usually do not see all the diverse colors someone like Monet puts into his landscape paintings. This is where artistic license comes in. It takes time to train your eyes to see something and know what colors to use to interpret it. So I choose to see how other artists have expressed what they see in nature and learn from them.

This is Renoir's original painting titled The Heads of Two Young Girls. I love the softness of the lines and brushstrokes, the saturation of the colors, and the various colors seen in the skin tones. When I copy Renoir's painting, I learn his technique (by trial and error of course) as well as how he interprets his real life subjects. Renoir will express skin tones differently than the High Renaissance artist Michelangelo or the Harlem Renaissance artist Jacob Lawrence.

On the left is my study of Renoir's piece done in 2011. As you can see, I could not mimic exactly Renoir's smooth edges or his contrast of intense and subtle colors. Every time I do a study of an artists' work, it expands my style and understanding of art. 

The following are studies or inspirations from the styles of other painters.

Study of Sir Alfred Munnings' The Poppy Field (20x24)

Monet's House at Givenry (12x16), inspired by his impasto and movement of the brushstrokes

Saint Giorgio Maggiore (12x16), inspired by Monet's lighting

Study of Henri's Jessica Penn in Black with White Plumes (16x20)

Study of Monet's The Train Engine in the Snow (11x14)

Still Life in Pink (11x14), inspired by Russian artist Nikolai Blokhin

Study of Renoir's Jeanne Samary (16x20)