Inside Scoop creating "My Ladies" of the "For the Common Good: The Changemakers" Honoring American Women Leaders throught Portraiture

 

 

 

 

 I thought it might be insightful and interesting to discuss my considerations in creating some of the portraits  "For the Common Good: The Changemakers" Honoring American Women Leaders through Portraiture. As I mentioned in the initial blog, each oil portrait has been carefully composed, considering significant details, color, composition and the subject to be painted at most relevant time of their lives.

 

                                             Clara Barton 

Let us start with  Clara Barton, "The Angel of the Battlefield," the Founder of the American Red Cross.

What an amazing selfless woman, she gave her entire life and even risked her life at times, in helping people in need. I really wanted to capture the kindness and sensitivity in her face and persona. Certainly her unflinching gaze tells it all!

 

 

 

For Clara's portrait I researched thru the Library of Congress for images of Clara. I wanted to capture her when she was still very active.

In so many of the images I reviewed, Clara is looking straight on. She has a very wide round full face, so I wanted to find a picture of her face in a 3/4 pose. I found a Matthew Brady photograph that would work great, plus have some design interest with her clothes, see below:

 

 

 

 

I did not want a 3/4 standing pose, as shown above, since all the portraits in this Tribute are generally between 14 x 18- 20 x 16 inches, and her head would be too small. I felt a cropped image of the reference photo would focus more on Clara's face and spirit and the viewers eye would not be wandering around caught in the folds of her  very full dress. See cropped photo below.

                            

                             Frances Perkins

                        "The Woman behind the New Deal" 

Wow, talk about an over achiever. What didn't she accomplish  at a time when women had very little professional opportunities.

Here are some of her accomplishments as FDR"s Secretary of Labor: 

 The first woman to serve in U.S. Cabinet, the driving force behind the New Deal, a leader in creating Social Security, Minimum wage,  unemployment insurance, the 40 hour work week, child labor laws, Welfare and the protection of labor rights. Whew!!!

I thought it was important to paint her at what she was always doing, working!

 

I was fortunate to find a reference photo of Frances at her desk, pen in hand, wearing her famous grey triangular hat. I changed the back ground to make it simpler and less distracting and also changed the chair so it would be more fluid with the composition. Even though I usually try to make  people look better and younger, I felt, since she was such a workaholic, I would paint her looking as tired as she was. 

Below is the reference photo.

Ida B.Wells 

Once again, I researched photos of Ida B. Wells, the powerful civil rights activist and journalist. I chose this one because it conveyed her power and "Bull Doggedness". 

Also, I loved her pose with the red  carnelian beads, no nonsense  power dress with the hard shinny black buttons, finger ready to point  and direct, and the great carved lion on the  wooden chair.

 

 

 

Here is the reference photo that I worked from. 

 

 

Now, there was a compositional problem with the above reference photo; too much space on the top left side of the photo, so your eye wanders there in that empty space.  But, I came up with an answer, thanks to good old dear pal, Rembrandt. 

I added more to the right side, to balance the left side and I added a semi-circle to each side to fill in the empty void. See Rembrandt's application below. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Helen Keller 

"The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched, they must be felt in the heart."

 

 

Helen Keller, oil on linen, 20 x 17

 

What a source for inspiration, even being blind and deaf, Helen's courage and devotion to enlightening humanity was unrelenting. I decided to paint Helen as a young girl of about 22 years. This was about the time that her strength of character was developing and  life's opportunities were blossoming. She had met Mark Twain, (whose property is my current home), a devoted friend, who arranged for her college education at Radcliffe College. The reference photo is below. I decided to flip the image, as I preferred her looking to the left, since the eye naturally goes left to right. Also, I thought that painting Helen from the side view would be more flattering then straight on.

 Reference Photo for the portrait.

  

 

 

Early stages of the portrait-first wash-in

 

  

Helen Keller's portrait in development

As the oil portrait was developing I made some more additions and changes to the reference photo. I added the gold/red  ornate chair behind Helen's right, to add structure for composition and a vertical line, and to tie in with the gold frame.  I changed the flowers and added a red flower to balance the red in the chair fabric. I also gave Helen a pearl earring, which added richness in detail and interest. 

 

 

Helen Keller and Mark Twain 1908 at Mark Twain's last home, Stormfield, in Redding, Ct. which was built on  the original Lobster Pot property, (where I have lived for over 40 years).

 

 

 

 Ida Tarbell   

 The most famous Muckraker 

 The woman that took on Standard Oil! 

 

Boy, I had fun with this portrait! I tried to evoke her as a snake coiled and ready to strike! 

 

Ida was a friend of Mark Twain's, and since I am a Twainiac and live on his original property, the portrait was even more special to me. Also, the fact the Ida lived in Easton Connecticut the next town over from Redding. 

I had to change the background, so as not to detract from Ida and I added to her left hand, as in the reference photo it was not shown. I placed a pen in her hand, since she was a writer journalist and I redesigned her hat to give it an Indian on the war path feel. I also delighted in adding  wooden "ball" like additions to the chair...guess why!

 

 

   

                                       Dolores  Huerta

                                               Yes we Can!

 

                                               

Dolores Huerta is a legend in early civil rights for farm workers. She and Cesar Chavez founded the United Farm Workers Association, (UFW). She worked tirelessly for the benefits of the workers and has been a recipient of many honors as shown here wearing her Presidential Medal of Freedom. I chose this image as it show Dolores as a strong, forthright and no frills woman. It was important to me to include images of her as an early activist (upper left) and striking union workers (upper right). Below are images of my reference photos.

 

 

 

  

 

 

Initial portrait block in  (center) showing color and black and white reference photos

 

 

Madame C. J. Walker 

 

 

Madame C. J. Walker oil on linen,  16 x 14

 

 

What a remarkable women! Certainly fortune was stacked against her, starting with becoming an orphan at 7 years old. Married at 14 and her husband died when she was 20, leaving her destitute. But she had determination and drive and by the time she was about 35 she was a millionaire. She established a hair beauty treatment business and had hundreds of door to door sales women.

I had a difficult time finding a good photo of Madame C. J. Walker. This photo is the  image of her that normally pops up in research. 

But I wanted to show more of her amazing accomplishments and  spirit. So, I used the below photo of her mansion she built on the Hudson and adapted the photo of her driving with her massive home, Villa Lewaro, in the background. Making an original composition.

Villa Lewaro Estate on the Hudson river

 

 

Madame C.J. Walker driving her fancy car,

Amelia Earhart

Creating Amelia's portrait was at first challenging, but then most rewarding. I started her portrait with her standing in front of 

her fateful Lockheed Electra Plane, see image below. But as this first portrait progressed, I felt it was lacking. It did not express Amelia's free spirit and energy.

 

 

   So I went back to researching reference photos and then I found this one:

                       This was it and I was off painting!

The portrait "flew" together, all the while I felt energized with enthusiasm. I think it has all that I wanted to convey about this dare devil record breaking aviator: spunk, fearlessness and tenacity.

  Plus, she is poised like a bird, in full sunshine ready to fly off into the sky...into her unknown.

 

To see more of my artwork, please visit: www.susandurkee.com