Dad's 75th Birthday

The latest mixed media portrait was a week's labor. Etched on 11 x 14" Canson with mixed media, I decided to commemorate my Dad's 75th birthday with a sketch of him from a recent photo. He would be the second family member that I've rendered, as I had my younger sister three years prior. Initially, I wanted to use an older photo, but I felt that wouldn't work. Thankfully, my sister came through for me and provided a recent picture to work with. For the background, however, I Googled a photo of the Toronto skyline taken from a location closest to a regular stop of his to further personalize it. While the foreshortening could have used more work, I'm pleased with the rendering. both the weeds and grass provided a challenge, as I changed the tones of them from the photo I referenced so that the brightness would match with that of my dad's likeness. For the Toronto skyline, meanwhile, admittedly I went with a minimalistic approach that can (maybe) be seen as Impressionism. Only Copic markers and other media were used to flesh out the buildings, but not one black graphic pen was used to convey a sense of depth in the picture. Overall, I'm glad I took on this challenge and produced one of my best pieces. Happy Birthday, Dad.