Mountain man

Bill 30'x40' oil on canvas

I met Bill last summer at Golandrinas. He was so friendly, gentle and cooperative with me. I remember his wife, Alice Turtle, was so sweet. He was old, but very well built. As soon as I saw him, I made up mind to paint him and took several pictures of him at the location because we didn't set up a schedule for modeling. I really wished to hire him as my model but regrettably, I didn't get his contact number. He said he was living somewhere in Southern New Mexico three hours away from Santa Fe.

I sketched the subject on a pre-toned canvas.

In order to match the value for the background and the face, I just started to paint the background along the face and headband. The value was so clear that it took only a few brush strokes capture his likeness.

I was careful not to make his facial hair too white.

I used white, raw umber and celluian blue from the lightest value and darkest value.

1. To paint the beaver furs, I used linseed oil for more smooth blending and a silky texture.

I changed his grey cotton shirts to a ship skin color and texture to make it more natural and warmer. 
The background color was also green. I refined the texture of the beaver fur and the drying rack.

2. The original background was in an almost solid green color and there was no space for the sky, so I painted "holes" to reduce the portion of the trees and green leaves. Finally, I was able to take a breather.
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