Actor, Samson

28"x22" at the initial session.
I started to paint on the canvas I sketched before. It was like recycling.
At first, I was a little having a hard time because the dark lines was too strong to see if the painting was going well. The face became the road sign for further additions.

Actor, Samson

28"x22" on the second session.
After the second session, I checked the progress of the painting. The model's wide wrinkled belly kept bothering me so that I thought something was needed not to distract it from the focal point at the face and to create a better composition.

Actor, Samson

28"x22" oil on canvas.
Mr. Samson used to be an actor and starred in a movie, Venus in Furs, in 1969.
He is performing as a gladiator at bars or shows around in Brooklyn. I drew him at the art league a long time ago. I found him at a street in Brooklyn while I was walking my dog in the middle of the night.
He said he was going back home after performing at an art center in Brooklyn and was happy to do modeling for me at my studio. He said that artists who worked with him call him a rock because he never moved while posing and was like using a rock as a model. He did a very good job, but I noticed that he moved a bit while he was sitting. However, he is an excellent model. During the second session, I put the golden robe across the shoulder to the belly to cover his wrinkled belly and empty space. I was happy to work with him. I am going to finish this painting next Sunday.