Inspiration Fridays! It’s time to grow a new way of seeing.
It’s time to grow a new way of seeing.
My first close shave came well before my first facial hair. Now I even have to shave my back. It’s not easy. Something else that a lot of men struggle with, is rocking the Burt Renolds look for the entire month of November.
“A good idea is right under your nose.” – Mustachio
It’s Movember (Mustache November, in honor of men’s health) and If you see a particularly dashing stash, it’s probably the strong shape that you are responding to. It could be the dark or light value or even the color, but it’s rarely the facial hairs themselves. A good mustache has character. Hair without shape is what’s left in the sink.
This rugged addition to a man’s portrait needs to be handled with some reserve… when you paint anyone’s hair… be it on the head, chin, or back, the trick is not to focus in on the details too soon but instead, to begin by seeing the bigger shapes. It’s easy to get lost in the trees without seeing the forest. Hair needs to be handled as a whole. This isn’t just a takeaway for Movember, it probably works for most things in life. Start with the big ideas and refine from there.
Grey Lag – 24″x48″ – Oil on Panel – Gabriel Mark Lipper
Imagine instead of drawing or painting, you were carving this lip fur from a marble slab. Now chip away at that chunk of hair as if it had a front and sides, maybe even a bottom. Light will fall on the form as a shape. Light doesn’t trifle with each individual hair. You can always refine the details later, just remember that each hair will generally be bathed in the same light as its neighbor. The shadow side of even the whitest beard remains in the shadow. The highlights that show up on a groomed stache will generally follow the form of the big planes of the face underneath. This can apply to the hair on the model’s head as well. With a little bit of faceting and generous lack of detail, you can have any style of hair you choose looking perfectly quaffed.
As I prepare for the opening of my new show Departure on December 2nd at Enlcāve Studios in my hometown of Ashland Oregon, it’s easy to get lost in the last-minute details and overwhelmed with busywork. At times like these, it’s important for me to remember the lesson of the mustache. When I focus on how the big pieces in the show are working together, and how the composition of each painting moves the viewer’s eye around the work, I know that I am building a great show. It’s when I start to worry about whether or not I have each eyelash in the right place that I start losing sight of the big picture.
If you are interested in learning more about Movember and the causes that it supports you’re welcome to click here.