Painting an Intimate Self Portrait

Like most self-portraits, this painting is an personal paintings often arise from rather mundane circumstances.

- Joseph Q. Daily

In this case, having reached the end of a roll of linen, I was left with a scrap that would allow for a 23-by-39-inch canvas. Eventually it occurred to me that this canvas could make for an unusually narrow portrait that, at roughly life size, would neatly fit a head at the top and hands at the bottom, highlighting both in an interesting way because of its narrow proportions.

I took it as a welcome opportunity to paint a new self-portrait, which I always enjoy, both for the process of self-reflection and for the occasion to work from life.

For the sake of the composition, I wondered if I should be holding something to justify the emphasis on the hands and decided it would have to be my silver cross. Every week before Sunday worship, I take my cross off its necklace chain and pin it under my lapel before walking out the door. This moment of solemn reflection became the basis for the painting, Self Portrait Preparing for Worship

STAGE 1 SETUP: It is always important to have a good setup before actually beginning to paint. I placed a mirror on an easel directly next to my main easel with the canvas. A fixture of fluorescent bulbs above my head put consistent light on me, my canvas and my palette. I also hung a dark sheet behind me and blocked out my studio windows to eliminate any extraneous lighting.