Portrait Warmup

I'm getting ready for next weeks week-long Painted Quilt Art class in Phoenix, Az. with "Quilting In The Desert!"   This length of class affords me time to do a demo portrait and I am always looking for a new challenge rather than relying on past fabric ink portraits.  A throwaway local magazine carried a photo of an adorable young girl.  As long as I am merely using this image for a personal refinement/ learning opportunity, it should be fine to use. Lest I contact the photo owner for permission, what I would NOT do is use this image in a finished portrait piece for public sale or competition.

 So I did a 30 minute unfinished portrait to to bring human portrait skills back in focus ( I often paint wildlife)   I like to  go for soft... almost  pastel chalk-look paintings of people... all using ink on fabric.

This is certainly a cute little girl.... I loved her happy eyes in dark shadow and 'am always challenged painting an open mouth. An open mouth generally calls for emphasis on the opening rather than the lips... the open area of the mouth would be the darkest area. As to teeth... you may hint at edge shape, but may not want to define each tooth ( alas the Dracula effect is easily achieved).  

Click on photo for enlarged view