Drawing Exercises

The beauty of art can counter Islamophobia – but it won't be easy by Jonathan Jones of the Guardian

Jonathan Jones is one of my favorite art critics; this is his latest column in The Guardian.  In case you are too busy to click all of the links, here is the poem by John Keats that he refers to in the article:

Addressed to the Same
John Keats

GREAT spirits now on earth are sojourning;   
  He of the cloud, the cataract, the lake,   
  Who on Helvellyn’s summit, wide awake,   
Catches his freshness from Archangel’s wing:   
He of the rose, the violet, the spring,           
  The social smile, the chain for Freedom’s sake:   
  And lo!—whose stedfastness would never take   
A meaner sound than Raphael’s whispering.   
And other spirits there are standing apart   
  Upon the forehead of the age to come;           
These, these will give the world another heart,   
  And other pulses. Hear ye not the hum   
Of mighty workings?—————   
  Listen awhile ye nations, and be dumb.

Finished Red Chalk Portrait of Namii

A little bit ago I posted about a demonstration at Patricia Hutton Galleries where I started a drawing.  The portrait is now finished:

Namii, Jaime Cooper, red chalk on sanded pastel paper

Drawing demonstration at Patricia Hutton Galleries

I gave a live portrait drawing demonstration at Patricia Hutton Galleries.  Thank you to all who stopped to chat!  Namii is not finished yet, but I will post more pictures when she is.

Namii by Jaime Cooper (unfinished)

 

Patricia Hutton and Jaime Cooper during the demo

The new sign is up!

The studio is completely moved to the new location!

116 West Main Street, Ligonier, PA 15658

 

 

Showing the setup for my students and some student work

Some of my work and my antique desk.

Some of my work and demos for students

Part of the art library and drawing models

Correggio Commission

See the previous post here. 

This is the start of the underpainting. I will be doing this as a series, so stay posted. This is oil on linen on panel. At this stage it is about 1 minute into the process. This is burnt umber thinned with turpenoid.  You can see the remains of some construction lines behind the masses of paint.

New Correggio Commission

I have recently received a commission to paint a copy of Correggio's Head of Christ, which is owned by the J. Paul Getty Museum.  It was painted about 1525 - 1530.  It is an extremely delicate and sensitive portrait, and I am looking forward to attempting it.  I will be doing a series on my painting process once I get a little further along with it.

Head of Christ, Correggio, J. Paul Getty Museum

According to the Getty Museum:
As Christ stumbled under the weight of the cross he bore on the way to his crucifixion, Saint Veronica comforted him and wiped his face with her veil. According to legend, Christ's features were miraculously imprinted on the fabric. In this haunting depiction, Correggio painted Veronica's veil as the white cloth in the background. Christ faces the viewer and parts his lips as if to speak.
Through the use of strong light and shadow as seen in the defined cheekbones, line of the nose, and hollow of the neck, Correggio gave his forms a sense of volume. He further used light to emphasize the image's poignancy, placing the left half of Christ's face in shadow while the right side receives light. The subject matter and small size of the Head of Christ probably indicate that it was made for private devotional use.

Working on moving to my new studio

I am moving the studio to a nicer location off the Diamond in Ligonier (the traffic circle in the middle of town). The new address is 116 West Main Street, Ligonier, PA 15658.  The new studio is located next to the Ligonier Echo office, across the sidewalk from the library. Art lessons are currently in full swing in the new space and my students are loving it!

Painting Sold

I have recently sold The Wedding to a collector in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.

The Wedding, Jaime Cooper, oil on linen