Transitions

Getting my mojo back

As my readers know, I’ve been in a physician quagmire. My doctors have either left their practices or retired, the grand finale being my oncologist’s retirement. 

Hell, even my cat’s beloved veterinarian is newly retired. But that’s another story.

Building a medical team from scratch is no easy feat. But I’ve finally taken the first step – deciding who will be my new primary care physician. 

A good friend recommended I accompany her to a medical appointment recently. She wanted me to see her doctor in action so I could decide whether this physician might be a good fit for me.

I’ve been skeptical lately. Recently one of the new physicians I saw was nothing short of ignorant, so I fired her because she wondered why I had breasts if I had a bilateral mastectomy. I told her I had reconstruction and that the procedure did not include implants like she thought, but used my own tissue to create breasts. She just stared at me as if I made it up. I offered to explain the procedure, called a DIEP flap, but she didn’t want to hear about it. I then saw another medical professional who rushed me through the appointment. I fired her as well. 

These are only two medical appointments, but lately I don’t have the bandwidth to try out many doctors. So I decided to take my friend up on her offer to check out her doctor. To my surprise, the physician was knowledgeable and deeply caring. She was also super nice, friendly, and engaging. So, I’m proud to say, I now have a quality primary physician, and my first appointment with her is in three months. 

It was one step, but it was one that gave me confidence and hope.

And that confidence poured over into my art. Lately, I had been putting off translating the nude initially drawn years ago in chalk pastels to an oil painted nude on canvas. So I drew the figure again on canvas, and this time, most of the drawing was spot on, partially because the canvas was the proper size (20” by 24”), the same size as the original drawing. I then decided to do more than outline the figure. I would paint her and then start shading to give her a three-dimensional look (all the pictures are at the end of this post). 

This painting illustrates a young woman who has had a single mastectomy and lost her hair due to chemotherapy treatments. Her face is not the original face of my first drawing, but it still looks equally effective, at least to me. Note: This model is not me. It is a representation of a young woman who has been undergoing breast cancer treatment.

For years, I’ve wanted to use pinks, blues, and purples for either a figure drawing or a portrait. So I decided to go for it on this figure. I mixed Prussian Blue and Cadmium Red with the base flesh tones created by Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Red, and Titanium White. The result was not just purple, but a kind of bruise-purple, very fitting for this piece.

Sometimes art takes you by surprise, and this one surely took me by surprise. Normally, the first draft of an oil doesn’t look at all like it should later on, and it takes several passes to get the shading right. This figure looks better to me than a first draft generally does. 

Either I’m improving with figure painting, or I’m just lucky. I don’t want to overthink it, so I will just be happy.

I did not paint the fabric she is holding or the background, and I do need to improve the piece. Her arms and neck need a bit of adjustment, and her head should be larger. The original model was sitting on something, so I’ll have to construct some area for her to sit on. But so far, I’m satisfied.

I’m tempted to borrow an idea from Vermeer’s Girl With a Pearl Earring and give her an earring. This might make a bold statement. I have to mull it over.

So, here are the transitions of the artwork – from the original chalk pastel to the most current draft.

Original chalk pastel sketch done in an art class years ago.

Second sketch based on the chalk pastel sketch.

Her facial expression thus far.

First pass, one solid color.

Second pass, with shading of purple and blue thus far.