This is the first of two commissions which have occupied all my painting hours recently. Normally I would not take on a project like this, since human faces are always a struggle for me. Maybe it’s just a mental block, but faces are my biggest challenge. In this case, it was hard to say no. The couple who asked me to paint this scene with their three grandchildren have been great supporters of my art, buying several original paintings over the last few years. Also, the colorful scene could be fun to paint. So I dove in!
My clients wanted a large painting from their photo, 24” x 36”, and also wanted the family’s dog and two cats added. They provided me with loads of reference photos, of both the children and the pets. I searched to find poses where the added pets would look natural in the scene, including similar lighting, direction of their attention, and details which would make them clearly recognizable. I had to extend the reference photo of the lemonade stand vertically to fit the proportion of the canvas, so this allowed me to add more grassy area at the bottom and position the pets there, as shown in my composite photo reference. The original scene did not have bright sunlight or dramatic shadows and highlights; the large tree above had provided relatively flat light - making my job easier.
I wanted to make sure the bright colors of the lemonade stand banners were consistent, since I was custom mixing them to match closely to the reference photo. I blocked in solid areas of the blue, green, melon/pink, and yellow. Animals are much easier for me than people, and I gained confidence by painting the pup’s head right away. As you can see, I made 8x10 photo enlargements of the parts of the painting requiring the most detail and attention.
I also concentrated on creating the background early on, which was largely foliage and grass. I simplified it by eliminating some background details in the photo, leaving the building to the far right to help identify the scene to those familiar with the location. I tried to capture the unique clothing too, since the children themselves would identify with them, especially memorable as they get older.
One of the simplest parts of the scene proved to be a bit complicated... the inside panels of the booth. I worked carefully to paint the colored stripes, which were evidently more bold when seen from the outside. I glazed over the areas with a couple of layers of slightly transparent white - this cut the contrast and also helped keep the area around the children from being too busy. A bit of shading finished the panels just right.
I love details, and it was fun to add soft folds to the hanging scalloped fabric at the top, show the dappled light hitting the yellow fabric roof, and duplicate the cups in the children's hands. The black cat's yellow eyes had been emphasized to me, and the fur on the dog and the grey cat were fun to capture. As you can see in my photos of the work in process, I left the children’s faces until most of the rest of the painting was done!
When working on commissions, I send images to my client as I progress, making sure I stayed on the right track. By photo #5 I felt like I had captured good likenesses of the children and the pets. I always take my commissioned paintings to a point where I think they are complete, then seek the client’s feedback on final changes or approval. Most of the final requests on this painting were about making the skin more rosy and the boy’s hair look red. I was nervous making these changes because the faces were only about 2” tall and I didn’t want to end up making them worse instead of better! I made the changes cautiously, working slowly with fine brushed. For final approval I presented the painting in person to my customers - and they are very happy! The painting will have a place of honor in the entry of their home, and preserve a carefree moment in these three youngsters' lives.
