Art Project #1: Painting of Elsa Benítez

In honor of my blog's half-birthday, I decided to paint something for "it" (lol). I have been longing to paint for so long now especially having seen the inspiring works of Danny Roberts. But I never found time/motivation/inspiration to do so. Well today, I finally sat down and painted, and it felt so good to be holding a brush again. I am no Da Vinci, Van Gogh, or Picasso, but I just enjoy painting. Back in my elementary and high school days, Art class was definitely one of my favorite subjects. HERE are some past works.

Today, I was wondering what/who to paint. Being very inspired by Danny Roberts, I thought why not paint a portrait of a model. But who? So many to choose from. I was thinking of all the models I knew, and trying to think of magazine covers/editorials they were in. Then a lightbulb switched on in my head. I decided to Google for a model whose birthday was also today being that it's my blog's half-birthday today. So I Googled and voila! Elsa Benítez from Mexico is the lucky winner. From what I read in her biography, she's not just a model but a SUPERmodel. She started her career after winning a model search competition in 1995 and has since appeared on various fashion magazines. She's been on the pages of Vogue, Cosmopolitan and Elle to name a few. Today, she turns 32.

I looked through her galleries to find a photo I would base my painting on. As you can see below I chose a simple black and white portrait of her. It was the best easy portrait I could do. I'm a little rusty from not painting for so long so... yeah.

Here's my painting:

Medium: Poster Color on Sketch Paper

I didn't follow it exactly as you can see. I just couldn't help it, I really wanted to use my gold paint. And yes, I realize I messed up her right cheek. But I think it works (or not). Did this in 1-2 hrs?. Anyways, I hope my next one will be better. I need more practice.  Hehehe :)

What ya guys think?

:)