Day 4, Copy of "Madame David" by Jacques-Louis David

I've started catching an earlier express bus in to DC, because the last bus of the morning, at 8:35, often doesn't show. So I'm now getting the 8:15, which takes the express lanes and gets me close to the National Gallery (6 blocks away) in about 35 minutes. (By contrast, I used to take the Metro, which after a 25-minute drive to the nearest station takes 45 minutes to get there.) The gallery doesn't open until 10, so I walked to a coffee shop and enjoyed a cup of coffee before walking to the NGA. This morning was partly sunny and beautiful after many days of rain. I took this picture from the bus as we crossed the Potomac from Virginia. Memorial Bridge is in the distance and the Lincoln Memorial is visible on the left. Washington is such a beautiful city, and that's one of the things I really enjoy about going in to copy every week.

The cherry blossoms are over, but the bleachers from the festival remain along Constitution Avenue.

After my coffee, I arrived at the NGA just in time for the doors to open. This brave squirrel really wanted me to give him a treat.

After getting my permit renewed, which we must do every month, I got to work right away on Madame David. I worked steadily for about 2 1/2 hours on her face, hat, and parts of her dress. There was still something wrong with the mouth, but it was time for lunch.

After a shorter than usual lunch with my copyist buddies, I spent some time working on her mouth, hands and right arm. We don't have to stop copying until 4:00, but by 3:15 I suddenly realized I was very tired and it was time to stop. Here is how the painting looked at the end of the day. 

I still have a ways to go. I don't have her expression quite right. To me, the expression on her face in David's painting is much more animated than I've managed to get. When I look at the original, I see David's wife, feeling a little self-conscious (you can see the tension in the muscles below her mouth as she tries to maintain a pleasant expression,) but she looks as though she's really tickled to be posing for her husband, a famous portrait painter, whom she loves. I don't know if I'll be able to catch that - I think I need to make her eyes smile more - but it's fun to try. I'd like to get into painting portraits, and copying from a master like David is a great way to learn and practice. Now I just have to find somebody willing to sit for me!

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Day 3, "Madame David" by Jacques-Louis David

 Yesterday was my third day copying "Madame David" by Jacques-Louis David. The museum was much more crowded than it has been because of the convergence of Spring Break, the cherry blossoms, and a rainy day (although it was more threatening than raining). 

I set aside my fear and got to work on the face right away. I paid attention to the shadow side of the face and the bluish skin tones around the mouth and eyes. I know I'll repaint the face again, continuing to refine things. I think I have the features a little small. Here is how the painting looked when I broke for lunch:

After lunch, I got to work on the hands, and also paid attention to the feathery hat. I'm not going to put the light feathers on the hat until a later time. I also repainted the upper right background because the original looks a little lighter and cooler. Here is how the painting looked at the end of the day:

Visitors told me that I have a good likeness, but I still think I have a ways to go. I'm learning a lot about the subtle changes in color that reflect the underlying structures of the face and hands. I'm pretty happy with how the skin of her chest looks. Next time I'll continue to work of the hands, face, hat and dress. I may not do much more to the red fabric around her arms, because it looks OK. I think the mouth needs the most work. See you next time!

Click the images for a larger view, and feel free to comment below