The Workshop (Ellis)

by Godfrey J. Ellis – 16×20 Acrylic Jan 2021

My brother, Barry, tends to just stare at the camera when his picture is being taken. In this photo, though, he has a wonderful smile and his personality is shining through. I had to paint it. It was taken in his much-loved carpentry workshop. I only wish we could see more of his eyes. Here is reference photo

In the photo below, Barry and Carol are opening the present. The poor lighting is because the sun was coming in the window behind them.

Here are two early drafts of the painting. In the second draft photo, you can see that, while I had sketched what I saw in the ref. photo, it looked like a pair of scissors was stabbing him in the head! I had to fix that one!