Nancy Wilson Portrait

I got into creating portraiture by illustrating Black women who were pioneers and innovators in their professions. The source of my exploration was piece by an illustrator who rendered jazz singer, Dinah Washington. I loved the style of the work. It was a seemingly naive yet expressive line drawing of the artist. I took a shot at the style with my version of Ms. Washington. It wasn’t a masterpiece in style or technique but I could see possibilities.

The next day I tried my hand with Nancy Wilson. Not an overwhelming success but something good was happening. I worked in Procreate so I explored brushes and effects on my way to portraiture. Day after day for a month I created a piece. Each one built upon the last.

When the month ended I saw that I was finding my voice in portraiture. The experience guided my work toward likeness instead of style. To this day I continue to explore what’s possible.