The Naked Truth

Telling it as it is

As my readers know, I am working on a collection of female nudes, which will be part of my  Breast Cancer, Female and Young series. I’m hoping that someday a gallery will provide a temporary home to this collection. But I’ve got a long way to go, as I have so many sketches and ideas coming at me so quickly. And I’m oil painting, which is a sloooow process due to a longer drying time.

How can one possibly describe the breast cancer experience in totality? One can’t.

Ever.

But I am trying to capture as much of the breast cancer experience as I can muster. I am doing this through various nude, young female figures. There is something about nakedness that conveys a sense of vulnerability and truth. I know that during diagnosis and treatments for this disease, I have felt metaphorically naked and so vulnerable, not to mention physically naked for various medical procedures.

In my last post, I shared one of the sketches I created in a figure drawing class. This week, as promised, I translated this nude into a first oil painting draft. Right now the figure looks wonky, but that’s because I haven’t added several layers and shading. Once again, I have to practice patience and feel confident that this painting will ultimately illustrate a powerful message.

I struggled with the figure’s left shoulder – and basically everything. I tried to indicate where her spine would be.

Translating the sketch into the oil painting draft was extremely hard work. I had to focus on placement. I made mistakes. I corrected mistakes. The figure’s arms are buried in fabric. I will have to create fabric, which concerns me, as I’m not well-versed in cloth. Thank goodness I love creating art because otherwise I would’ve given up. 

I just have to tap into my confidence bank and know that this figure will eventually become alive and make a statement.

First oil painting draft

Original sketch. Notice her slight lean to the right. I want to eventually capture this in the oil painting.