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Fascinating People Portraits Peter Worsley |
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On Painting Crowd Scenes: Looking at crowd scenes is fun! They are interesting because, you can view them over and over again - and each time see something new.
Artists have been painting scenes of mobs, crowds, and battles for centuries. As one of them, I enjoy composing paintings documenting events with large numbers of people.
Such paintings become full of inter-personal stories. Stories put together to hold you, the viewer's, attention.
Early works tended to reflect mythological or religious events. They were colorful, spectacular, and designed to impress the viewer - who probably could not read, but could relate to the visual message.
Later artists tended to reflect everyday life. Often they painted on location, capturing people and families as the artist observed them.
Like many of these artists, I paint the colorful imagery of life around me.
Planning: - When planning a new crowd, or for that matter a group painting, I look for a theme that has a lot of action.
Usually the setting is familiar – typically somewhere near Santa Barbara or some place I have visited - where I may easily obtain source images.
Once settled on a general theme, I work the idea in my mind – often for several weeks or even months.
Developing The Idea: - It is important that the figures and backgrounds are interesting to the viewer. All my people are cast to be actors in my constructed theme story – often with a touch of humor.
These days I paint from photographs. Over the years I have accumulated many thousands of digital reference images. Most are of people. But also included are wide-angle shots to provide source data for backgrounds.
For group or crowd scenes I use images of single or multiple people. Frequently such needed images are already in my computer files.
If a suitable image is not on file, I plan to take new photographs. Often, these are close-ups taken with the powerful zoom lens of my digital camera, usually from a great distance.
Preparing The Composition: Usually, I start by laying out in my mind a background scene, before which the players will be arranged.
Next I choose a format. Is the painting going to be wide? How high? Should I use multiple canvases? How will the finished painting be hung?Most of my recent canvases have painted edges and do not need a frame.
Sometimes I have used multiple canvases. Such finished painting may be large, show considerable detailed action, but still be easy to handle.
Starting: Next is the development of preliminary sketches to document the composition.
The detail of the composition may change many times as detail is added. But by laying out the painting in my mind, the concept begins to firm up.
If it does not work, at this stage it easy to change my thinking.
Looking through my people image collection, I start pulling more detailed thoughts together. Images of the actors may be flipped horizontally to obtain a desired effect, view, or a perhaps a better story. Everything is in creating the stories.
Preparing To Paint: About now I chose and prepare the canvas(es). Often I will cover the entire canvas with a ground color – usually a dilute solution of Burnt Sienna.
Then I sketch the background scene in a darker shade using Burnt Sienna with a touch of Ultramarine.
If perspective is a big issue, I may construct pencil sight lines to aid the layout.
Next, I will develop and paint the background, sky, and ground areas, sketching in much of the detail. Since I paint using opaque colors, this background will later be overlaid with the actors.
From my people image collections, I create a “hot” catalog of people images that seem appropriate for the this painting.
As I work, I go to this “hot” catalog to select the specific actors to position on the canvas. Usually I sketch them with dilute white or colored paint.
The details are developed or changes needed, it is easy to alter, cover, or lift out the figures as needed. The paint remains soft for several days and corrections may be made as I proceed.
As the people details are developed, often the parts of one person may be supplemented or merged wih those of another.
I may rotate one image, change a person's height, move their hands or arms, give them something to carry, or take away something they are holding. All to improve or enlarge the story.
Frequently I change their dress, colors, hair, lighting, or shadows; always to better suit the story development.
Nearly always, the backgrounds and the various players have been widely separated from their original situations. Usually it would be difficult for someone to recognize themselves.
As I paint, the final stories evolve around my chosen images. Everything is in the stories. That is what makes the finished painting interesting to the viewer.
Completion: - As the painting nears completion, I hang it across my studio so that it is in full view as I work on the next painting. Looking at the work, ideas for improvements often become apparent.
When finally I am happy, the work is sealed with medium, and moved to my gallery area.
Painting is a continual learning process. I am always experimenting - trying new subjects, new methods, and new materials.
If you are local or are planning a visit to Santa Barbara, email or call for an appointment to Visit My Studio and Private Gallery. I will be glad to show you how it is done and view examples of my finished work.
Updated July 2007
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"Beach Walking"
A diptych.