My Journey - Day 14

So ... today is the last day of August. 31 days until my portfolio is due to Portraits, Inc. I want to stress that, I can turn my portfolio in at any time - I don't have to wait until October 1. I'm not procrastinating either, I just want to make sure all of my ducks are in order. With children, family, being a full time student, plus book cover designs, etc., I must admit that I'm a little more anxious than usual.

Yesterday, I made a list of every thing I needed to do on each portrait. It was then that it hit me that I have no people of color in my portfolio. This bothers me because I've probably completed just as many portraits of minorities that I have of Caucasians. I just don't have any in my portfolio, and it's much too late to begin one. I hope that if Portraits, Inc., are looking for this in my portfolio, they'll give me the opportunity to complete one. When I realized this, I got a little tense. All of those portraits through the years, and I didn't keep a single one for my portfolio ... great.

Anyway, all I can do now is push forward and see what happens. 

Rev. Frank Gooch - In Progress

Coming along. Now the book case has been mapped in.

My Journey - Day 12

Below is the response I received from Portraits, Inc. I emailed them asking if they accepted charcoal portrait submissions, and if they offered feedback on rejected portfolios. I have not included the name of the individual responding to my inquiry, as I'm not certain she'd want me to put her name out there. I felt that if I'm going to document my journey, why not put it out there for everyone to see. I know it's just a response email, but it's somewhat exciting having them respond to me, considering this is a company I desire to work for.

Dear Mr. Price,

Thank you for your interest in Portraits, Inc. We do accept charcoal portraits as a medium, and you are welcome to include examples of your completed oil and charcoal portraits in your submission. We do offer limited feedback for those artists we are unable to accept on our roster, but please know that we do not attempt to be art critics. We only evaluate based on our understanding of our current markets and the requests we receive from our clients. For a more detailed critique of your work, we would recommend you take advantage of the critique services offered through the Portrait Society of America.

Thank you again for your interest, and we will look forward to reviewing your work.
Best regards,
XYZ Portraits, Inc.

My Journey - Day 11

Today has been one of those blahhhh kind of days. I began working this morning around 6:30, and once I wrapped up a section some 30 minutes later, I found it difficult to continue working throughout the day. This happens from time to time. I even went over to my posted sign that reminds me, "how bad do you want it?" This plaque usually gives me the boost I need to really get charged. It's not that, I'm just having difficulty staying motivated. I don't know ... we'll see how the rest of the day turns out. I have exactly five days left as of today. I emailed Portraits, Inc., the other day to request some information about submitting my portfolio. I'll put their response up here in another day or so. I think seeing their response turned up the volume on my nervousness so to speak. I think I need to grab a friend and go to Starbucks and shoot the breeze one of these days. I'm extremely tense, but I think that's to be expected. Confidence ... at this moment, I have none. I felt pretty good this morning, but as I look back over the day, I can't believe how I slacked off.

Rev. Frank Gooch - In Progress

The outline has begun.

Rev. Frank Gooch - In Progress

Here we go. The photo references of Rev. Gooch were taken courtesy of Peter Webb. Some of his work can be seen at https://www.facebook.com/PHOTOwebbDesigns

Rev. Frank Gooch - In Progress

This is a size comparison photo. Basically, I'm showing my height in relation to the portrait. This portrait will be a 3/4 painting. Meaning, the head, upper & lower torso will be painted.