Caution:Artist at Play-Artwork by Shana Rowe Jackson

     Those of you who know me know that I LOVE trying new art supplies! Most artists do right? That's why mystery art boxes are such a fun concept! Unfortunately, I do not currently have it in my budget to commit to an art box subscription. Thankfully, most art subscription boxes offer previous boxes for sale so that you can choose a box of your liking and do a onetime purchase.      That's what my husband did for me for Valentine's day, he bought me an ArtSnacks box! In the past, I have bought a previous box for my nephew for his birthday. However, I had never had the chance to indulge in one myself! So much fun!      The box my husband got me was from May 2021 and it was a gouache themed box. It came with two colors of gouache (magenta and white) as well as an eraser, a graphite pencil and a dagger shaped paintbrush. This made for a fun monochromatic challenge. I decided to create a nice warm sky with tree's silhouetted against it, the color scheme made for a delightf

"Every portrait that is painted with feeling is a portrait of the artist, not of the sitter." -Oscar Wilde "My True Colors" Self Portrait, Colored Pencil and Marker © Shana L Rowe Jackson 2012   Portrait and figure painting is very exciting for me. There are many things to factor in, not only do you have the same challenges with composition and color mixing as with any other painting, but you also have the challenge of creating a likeness to the sitter. Likeness is not only shown in a persons face, but body language as well, so it is important to pay attention to both in order to capture a persons essence. Likeness paintings can come in many shapes and sizes, they can be of one person, many people or even of pets (just because it's a Dalmatian doesn't mean it looks like all Dalmatians). Whether you are doing a close up (shoulders up [Portrait]) or far away (whole body [Figure]) view, likeness is very important. Looking at the painting below you