FAQs by Rosemary Vasquez Tuthill

Rosemary Vasquez Tuthill - “Here are some of the most Frequently Asked Questions I receive.”

What is your oil painting process for portraits?

In my process, I ask for a high-quality photo to identify the desired pose.  I also need several additional photos to gain an overall impression of a subject.  For your 2-person painting, you can send the general pose of the two of you, but also send individual pictures for detail (hair, clothes, etc.) Each subject is painted with many layers – up to 12 – with base colors and successive translucent layers or additional colors to provide depth and dimensionality.   I like to paint in convincing detail that sometimes requires painting with a magnifying glass and a paintbrush with just a few bristles.   It takes about 6 weeks to paint a portrait, due to the multiple layers and drying times.  Portraits can have a museum wrap or in a standard thickness, ready for you to frame.

I will review your high-quality professional photograph or group of photographs, as I start by laying out the basic image on a prepared canvas.   I like to lay down a solid base layer and then build out skin colors by adding multiple layers of translucent paint colors that need to dry between each layer.  I only use high-quality oil paints with superior pigments that will not fade over time.  I build out layers of skin tones, add light and shadow effects on clothes, and highlight background effects.  The final details are painstakingly crafted to capture the subject’s aura.  I tend to like impressionist backgrounds or accent color backgrounds and maintain focus on the subject.  I also tend to leave eye detail for last to give life to the portrait.  If the eyes are focused forward, the portrait takes on a life of its own by “following you” as you view the face from various angles.  Your painting will be finished with a UV protective coat of varnish ready for framing!

I also ask for people to:

Send the subject’s photos to vasquezartrose@gmail.com include any special instructions.  Please give a brief story of the subject to be painted, it helps me capture his or her personality. We will contact you to confirm your sent photo and estimate completion date.

What are the Portraits of Influence about?

I created the ongoing Portraits of Influence© series that features paintings of notable individuals who have made contributions which have influenced culture and affected society in areas including politics, science, music, art, technology, sports, social justice, and other areas with the common link – each individual in the series has supporters and detractors.  Recognizing these individuals for what they achieved is important for consideration, but it is also important to embody the impacts these accomplishments had on their essence as reflected in each of their portraits.

In the Portraits of Influence© paintings, viewers will be able to review, consider, discuss, and comment by comparing and contrasting observations of the displayed works.  Some say that historically, art keeps pace with society.  Since mankind placed animal images on cave walls, or as portrayals of religious stories, as political propaganda or as curated history, art tends to serve – at least partially – as a reference to where society and culture was at a particular point in time.  Currently, American society and culture seems to be growing more and more polarized in its perspectives as influenced by politics and core beliefs.  Portraits of Influence© provides a vehicle to encourage dialog and promote a desire to communicate ideas and positions in a constructive manner.

When you look at the portraits, note the detail in the person and pay attention to the background.  Each background reflects the essence of the subject as I conceived.  Also, I sometimes places Easter eggs in the painting as a means of associating selected achievements.

What is the mural a the bottom of the pages?

The mural was originally painted in 1989 by Emigdio Vasquez and his son, Higgy, for an Orange County Fair Event. This 10’ x 48’ mural is titled, “Spanish, Indians, and Today’s Hispanics”. The back story is that the mural was stored after the Orange County Fair event in a body shop for nearly 30 years: and it was discovered by an employee who was looking for a drop cloth and discovered the drop cloth was a mural. Noting the artists’ names on the mural, he contacted Rosemary. Her husband contacted the Heritage Museum Executive Director, Kevin Cabrera, to discuss their interest in restoring, housing and displaying the mural. He agreed.

Rosemary found that the mural was dirty, had mold spots, and a few tears. Each of these issues were resolved and Rosemary painted every square inch of mural over a six month period. The restored mural was unveiled Friday, September 27, 2019 at 5 PM PDT – 8:30 PM PDT. Heritage Museum is currently storing the mural while it is procuring funds to build a permanent display enclosure.