Virginia Woolf Wears Polka Dots
12×16 on canvas
Acrylic mixed media collage 
portrait painting
Prints available here
Day 18/365

Art is not a copy of the real world; one of the damn things is enough.

Virginia Woolf

I like to think that if Ginny was still alive today she: 1. wouldn’t mind that I call her Ginny 2. would appreciate that I painted her wearing polka dots 3. and love the teal blue I dyed her hair. I somehow think she’d get a kick out of all of it. She seems like such a good sport, at the very least, she wouldn’t mind. 

 portrait of Virginia Woolfe

As such portraits as we have are almost invariably of the male sex, who strut more prominently across the stage, it seems worthwhile to take as a model one of those many women who cluster in the shade.
Virginia Woolf

I highly doubt you’d find Virginia clustered in the shade, if she was still with us today. I’m sure she’d be letting her voice be heard. Nonetheless, this portrait is for you, Gin. 

This is the third time I’ve painted Virginia this summer, and will be the last, I think. I painted one very similar to this one in my art journal, which gave me the idea to paint this one on canvas. I’m not sure if I posted it here or not, but it’s over on Flickr. Btw, if you wondering, Flickr is far from dead. I know that’s been the rumor ever since IG became so big, but I have constant emails rolling in throughout the day from people favoriting my photos, and/or leaving comments. Personally, I like Flickr better than IG because I can upload there from my Mac, where all my better quality photos usually are kept. Also, I like looking at photos better on a big screen. 

I still have a black and white Virginia (I keep wanting to call her Emily, and have multiple times in my head. I do hope she forgives me, but they look alike) I’m working on in oils that I will be posting soon, I hope.  

Man, forget mornings in the studio. I’ve been spending morning, noon, and night there. This 365 day project has been the best gift I ever could have given myself. I’ve been painting soooo much, and it’s been good, quality paint time where I’ve actually been learning a lot. I’m not just rushing through “on to the next one”, like I’ve done for so long. Sorry Jay Z, but I don’t have your song in my head when I’m working any longer. It’s like, I suddenly have all the time in the world, and it’s a great feeling to love what I do once again.

This painting took me a little over 2 weeks to complete. I completely blocked out, and repainted her face four times. I loved her hair right away, but her right eye kept giving me trouble, even though it’s barely visible. 

Thanks for stopping by! I’ll see you tomorrow.