Children Portraits: Jimmy and Jan

11x15 watercolor from my client's memory, a twilight scene with fireflies in east Texas one hot summer. They were 5 years old and he placed a lightning bug (firefly) ring upon her finger. I tried to show the innocence of children having a private moment she would cherish and remember from the mid 1950s. Getting the light just right, plus all the rest, was a real challenge! I don't have kids and had no references, so it was even more difficult to depict "Jimmy and Jan", and hope I did it justice.  This painting is SOLD.
Image COPYRIGHT 2013 Kay Smith.

WIP - Children continued

In this detail of the little girl you can see where I've laid in negative shaped trees in the background.

Now all across are beginning to be a cohesive group of twilight trees.  I've left a spot on both their heads for bright light and may or may not leave that alone.

More glazes added for skin tones using quinacridone burnt orange, burnt sienna, cadmium orange, and cobalt violet.  I have more images coming so do stay tuned.

More WIP - Children and fireflies

More was done on the boy, Jimmy, by adding colors for his brown hair.  Jan's yellow dress is about done with quin gold highlights added to her hair.  For the grassy background I let various mixes of blues and yellows form the grass.  Main background will be negatively painted trees over the miskit dots (fireflies).

WIP boy and girl children portrait

I began painting the girl's hair, wet on dry watercolor using quinacridone gold and raw sienna for blond highlights.  Her yellow dress colors are Winsor yellow and quin gold.  His hair is light brown using quin burnt orange, carbazole violet and ultramarine blue; her hair has touches of the blue as well.  Masking dots are places where fireflies, or lightning bugs are.  He is placing a firefly "ring" upon her finger and the setting is twilight.  Flesh colors are burnt sienna and cadmium orange and the time setting is in the mid 1950s.  Stay tuned for more to follow later.
Image is COPYRIGHT 2013 Kay Smith.