Motown Blue

A Portrait of a City Woman on a Dreary Day

Motown Blue oil on canvas, 14x18

Typically this model is a fierce Detroiter whose big eyes convey an "Mmm-Hmm Just Challenge Me" attitude. She is a Survivor, having lived through much heartache and turmoil in her life. Her eyes are full and large, a lovely facial feature. In this session, she had learned some bad news about a family member and the sadness showed in her eyes.

The model brought the orange dress which harmonizes nicely with her Orange-ish skin tone. I mixed Cad Red Light, White and Light Yellow Ochre to create her mid-tone skin. For the shadow side of her face I added in some light purple-ish while for the light areas I mixed in Naples Yellow. She is also wearing a blue patterned scarf which is is the true complementary color to orange.

The light from the left was a pale blue grey, which is why her lower lip, left eyelid and some of her neck are a pale purple. Notice how the orange dress reflects off her arms and under her chin.