A traditional method of painting a portrait 4

he portrait is nearly complete. I have continued building up detail through a series of glazes alternating with more solid pigment.

I pay close attention to blending, whilst at the same time increasing the depth of shadows and picking out the highlights in the flesh. With a hogs hair brush I try to capture the flow of the hair before finally using a sable rigger to add the wispy bits. This technique is particularly useful where the hair goes into the background. This way, the contour is softened.
A few minor adjustments to the face, a bit more detail to the blouse, and the portrait will be finished.