Jo

Lovely portrait, great gallery, you should be proud of yourself. : )

very well done!! I like!

You hav a fantastic gallery. Great portraits

Fantastic. I just wouldn't know where to start!

lovely portrait, well done!

Superb portrait. Lovely expression, lovely light and amazingly well done hair. P.S. I notice that you haven't replied to many of the comments on your previous paintings. Could I ask you to consider doing this as I have some questions I would like to ask you about your technique. Thank you very much.

Your portaits are fantastic....... You have such a wonderful use of watercolour. I could look at them over and over again.

This is just PERFECT!!!!

Hi Thea and everyone, Just got in to so many lovely comments. Thank you! What a service this website gives! More than happy to answer any technique related questions if I can.

Superb gallery and great technique. How do you handle the hair?

Thanks for replying, Catherine. It was just that on a previous portrait you stated that the portrait was done in 'saturated watercolour' and I wasn't sure what you meant by that. Perhaps you could enlighten me! Also, if it is not a trade secret, could you indicate what skin tone colours you like to use. I launched into portrait painting in watercolour about 9 months ago and am on a steep learning curve, so all the information I can get helps enormously. Thank you.

Absolutely wonderful portfolio, can't wait to see more.

Catherine, your portraits are amongst the best watercolour portraits I ever saw! Portraits in watercolour are so difficult..I am amazed! Stunning!

Catherine I have just had a look at your website and see you paint everything else with just as much skill! Some of your landscapes really moved me! Is this your profession?

Jo is a joy!

Beautiful portrait, her personality shines through.

Thanks for your comments and question Amanda - yes I am painting portraits to commission. Pre-children i was a full time painter and the hours I paint are slowly increasing back up now they are reaching Secondary School age. It's a wonderful thing to fit around family commitments.

Hi Thea, You asked about skin tone colours. For the brightly lit areas I favour varying combinations of very diluted Cadmium Red, Alizarin Crimson and lemon yellow. For the mid tones as the skin curves away from the light I use raw sienna and Alizarin Crimson and then for the unsaturated shadow areas are introduce Hookers Green and Burnt Umber. Hope this helps. Do you have any place I can see your work online?

Thanks Catherine for that info - very helpful. In my skin tones so far, I have used Cad red, yellow ochre and sometimes a touch of carmine and mineral violet. I have a gallery on here - if you just put up 'Thea Cable' in the search box, my gallery should come up. It is divided into two parts - my paintings and my portraits.

Great portrait. jx

Abasolutely love your portraits Catherine. I have just started drawing/painting again after a long time although have never been trained, just self taught. Am off to watercolour classes next week which I am looking forward to. I want to learn, learn, learn and my aim is portraiture I guess as I love peoples faces, expressions, etc but who knows. If I end up half as skillful and artistic as yourself I will be happy!

Thanks Kay. I'm also self taught in that i don't have a upper qualification in fine art. But I found that a few years of tough, disciplined life classes have helped me a lot. I'm a total fan of watercolours in portraiture - though there seems to be a huge bias in this country towards oil portraits owing to our rich history in this field I suppose (especially here in my home town of Bath!)