Charlotte in the window

Painting by Vicky Christensen, mixed media on 16 x 12 inch canvas 

I finished Charlotte's portrait. I just need to give it a day or two before I give it a clear acrylic isolation coat.

To summarize the process, this painting started with random splashes of color on a canvas prepped with Golden acrylic grounds for pastels. In parallel I drew Charlotte on a skin of acrylic grounds for pastels using Cretacolor Aquamonolith watercolor pencils. Since the acrylic grounds are translucent, I was able to place the skin over a photo of Charlotte and trace to get a more accurate drawing.

 I glazed the canvas with Golden Titan Buff then added gauzy fabric for the curtains.

Before gluing Charlotte to the canvas I used molding paste to create the surface where she would lie (impressed with a paper towel to give it texture). I also painted her silhouette in Titan Buff. Since the acrylic grounds are translucent I needed an opaque background for the collage element.

After gluing Charlotte to the canvas with gloss gel, I embellished her and the background with more paint and glazes.