The Pink Hat

by | Oct 10, 2017

“The Pink Hat” is a painting I’ve been wanting to do for months! A dear friend had been to Uganda, and this little girl’s picture was among the photos. Her innocence was so compelling. So was the hat. Interestingly, the most difficult part for me were the hands. The way the lighting fell on them, and basically removed the dark brown color, made for an interesting problem. How to place the light and not draw the eye there as the subject was really the face!

 

Women Waiting
I forgot to take a picture of the initial drawing. Frankly, I’m amazed I remember to take any pictures at all. I get so immersed in the paint that I forget where I am.

She looks a bit strange…however, I’m trying to locate the shapes and values. The lines had already suggested the movement or placement.

Women Waiting
Where are the darkest darks, the midtones, and the light?
Women Waiting
I’m still laying in the darks, and finding the placement of the facial features.
Women Waiting
She’s starting to take form, and I can lay in the hat, which I’ve been dying to do. I just love her expression!

The wonderful part of being a painter is that you can decide what you want to emphasize or not. What color should the background be? Green is the complement of pink…does that work?

Women Waiting
I love her outfit. Again, what shadows do I bring forward (with a reddish tone) or set back (with a cool blue or blue/black). You can create great tension with cool colors against warm, not just light against dark.
Women Waiting
I decided I wanted a Ugandan countryside behind this little Ugandan girl. It’s filled with greens, pinks and oranges.

Now I’m moving to the hands with the gown as the background.

Women Waiting
Her right hand was interesting in that there were so many colors, shapes, darks and lights.
Women Waiting
The left hand was a bear! Hands are so expressive. I remember my mom’s hands so well…she who couldn’t sew on a button, but spoke volumes with her hands. I wanted these hands to express a certain vulnerability. Only time will tell if I succeeded or not.
Here’s the final piece. I decided to go with the left hand connecting with the right but relaxed as she’s not thinking about her hands. This hand was rough as I stated before. You have to be careful where you want the eye to go. It will be drawn to the light, and the hand is not the subject but, hopefully, an added statement.
THANKS if you managed to get to the end of the blog! Please comment if you have things you’d like to know or if I’m not conveying my thoughts in a way that makes sense (which is highly probable..).

’til next time!

Sarah

Thanksgiving Blog

by | Nov 25, 2019 | , | 0 Comments

Sarah's Update  What a year this has been! Most of it has been dedicated to illustration and the publication of our book, Frog's Rainy-Day Story and Other Fables. I've been able to grab time to fit in these little paintings, which I've grown to love. I have them...

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by | Jan 23, 2019 | | 0 Comments

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by | Jul 30, 2018 | , | 0 Comments

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by | Jul 4, 2018 | , | 0 Comments

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by | May 15, 2018 | | 0 Comments

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by | Feb 2, 2018 | | 0 Comments

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by | Aug 14, 2017 | , | 0 Comments

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by | Jul 25, 2017 | | 0 Comments

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by | May 26, 2017 | | 0 Comments

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by | Mar 28, 2017 | , | 0 Comments

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by | Jan 4, 2017 | | 0 Comments

This painting was a Christmas gift from Luke to his wife, Rosie. Tackling this portrait was scary because I know Rosie, and I wanted this to be good, PLUS I’ve never done anything with this many different personalities in one portrait. I mean, look at the...

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by | Dec 13, 2016 | | 1 Comment

  Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to All!   Sarah    

Blog

by | Dec 13, 2016 | | 0 Comments

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year to All!            

Holiday Season Blog

by | Nov 16, 2016 | | 0 Comments

"SOPHIE"   Pastel Portraits Make wonderful Keepsake Gifts! "Two Asparagus" - watercolor print "Shallots" - 11" x 11" watercolor available for sale "Merry Christmas, Sophie" - Personalized digital print fits right into an 11" x 17" frame ~ wonderful gift for a child ~...

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by | Oct 27, 2016 | | 0 Comments

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by | Jul 11, 2016 | | 0 Comments

Image size - 11" x 14" Matted size (ready for framing) - 16" x 20"                        ~ 3 DIFFERENT CHOICES sepia on toned tan paper sepia on white drawing paper charcoal on toned gray paper                        ~ I'M NOW OFFERING PENCIL...

Sarah Buell Dowling Spring Blog 2016

by | May 19, 2016 | | 0 Comments

I'm madly painting and framing in anticipation of this Spoleto Festival. I have no idea what to expect, but I'm hoping that the people who might like my work will find me. As you can see from the paintings on this post and in the side panel, I don't have one style. I...

Fall Blog 2015

by | Oct 22, 2015 | | 3 Comments

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