Watercolor portrait 18" x 24"

Sometimes I only have a photograph from which to paint a portrait of a home. Other times I can take my own photos but am just seeing the house for the first time when I do. But in this case, I've known the owners for a long time and walked by their home every morning for years. 

So while I took photos to use for reference, I was inspired by how the light falls on it first thing on a summer morning. We knew from the start this was to be an 18" x 24" watercolor but there wasn't time to finish it before the anniversary it was being purchased for. So I started out painting a small 9 x 12" watercolor that I could complete faster and provide for gift giving while I used it as a reference to paint the larger work.

Both watercolors started with a pencil drawing

Then progressed to their final forms

The sketch reminded the homeowner to tell me to lower the little tree so more of the front porch would be visible, which I did.

This is the stage when I start getting excited about the painting. But also mindful that the portrait lets me know when it is finished. This is the stage I usually show photos to the people commissioning the work to get feedback, since there is still time to incorporate it.

In this case they really wanted the two rocking chairs on the front porch and the second Boston fern hanging in the middle bay.