Tuesday, December 30, 2008

rama hughes & henry hughes

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my brother has a bold, care-free style of portraiture. he basically barrels into each drawing with complete faith that ~ even if the details are not just right ~ his many drawing skills will pull the picture together in the end. his portrait of me (above) is a masterful example. i tried his method when i drew him (below). it takes practice, i think.

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Sunday, December 28, 2008

lali shaw & lauren hughes

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this portrait swap between my sister (portrayed above) and my mom (portrayed below) reminds me of the olden days when the two of them were nearly inseparable. lali even dressed a lot like our mom.

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Friday, December 26, 2008

don meagher & christine castro hughes

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my dad (portrayed above) loves my wife (portrayed below). he's a tough nut to crack sometimes but christine did it somehow. of all my girlfriends, she was the first who really interested him. if you're familiar with his drawings, his affection is apparent in our portrait parties.

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Wednesday, December 24, 2008

barbara levy & rama hughes

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my grandma (portrayed above) doesn't do portrait parties. she join us for the get-togethers and she models ~ does she ever! ~ but she never actually draws. so, no one went looking for her when she missed our sister's portrait party. we assumed she wasn't interested. surprisingly, barbara was really disappointed. she had taken a nap and was sad to have missed the festivity. "we can always have another one!" i suggested. so, my grandma, christine, and i had our own portrait party. barbara even participated with her first portrait ever! "it's not very good," barbara approved her drawing of me (below), "but it's the best thing i ever drew."

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Monday, December 22, 2008

erik shaw & don meagher

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my dad adds bow ties or hats or mustaches, et cetera, to almost all of his portraits. it's his gimmick. don's drawing of his new son-in-law (above) was no exception. but erik turned the tables on him (below)!

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Sunday, December 21, 2008

130-Artist Portrait Swap

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A new participant, Ed Marion, just introduced me to The Portrait Party's long-lost sister-site, Different Strokes From Different Folks. Every 2 weeks, Karin Jurick posts a photo and scores of artists paint their interpretations of it.

This 3-week period, Karin has posted a portrait challenge so that approximately 65 pairs of artists will be swapping portraits. Karin seems to have opened the door for some last minute participants. Ed thought that we would all like to know about it. We would! Thanks, Ed!

Saturday, December 20, 2008

lali shaw & henry hughes

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happily, my sister (portrayed above) and my brother (portrayed below) are always game for a portrait party when we're all together. sadly, that doesn't happen as often as it used to.

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Thursday, December 18, 2008

lauren hughes & rama hughes

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when i was 11, my mom (portrayed above) drew a picture of me (portrayed below) in my underwear. that was my apparel of choice back then. when i was 21, she decoupaged that drawing onto a present for me. it was a beautiful box full of letters and drawings from my friends. you could say that box started this portrait party. tomorrow, i turn 34. it amazes me that we've been drawing each other for that long. decades!

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Tuesday, December 16, 2008

mrs. & mr. alex butterfield

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alex drew his wife (on the left) and he made her draw him too (on the right) even though she was reluctant. see, gang? that's how you get a portrait party going: coercion, extortion, bribery. it's fun for the whole family!

Sunday, December 14, 2008

don meagher & henry hughes

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father (portrayed above) and son (portrayed below) in matching, albeit make-believe, hats.

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Friday, December 12, 2008

gordon redshaw & parita shah

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this swap is all about the eyes. gordon (portrayed above) and parita (portrayed below) drew this portrait party version of a staring contest.

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beautifully, i might add.

Wednesday, December 10, 2008

clara charlotte & michael nobbs

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clara from germany (portrayed above) met michael from aberystwyth (portrayed below) through twitter. they bonded over danny gregory books. it sounds like a portrait party was inevitable.

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Monday, December 8, 2008

lali shaw & christine castro hughes

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one of the things that i love about actual real life portrait parties is seeing how friends who wouldn't normally draw each other do draw each other. lali (portrayed above) and christine (portrayed below) would probably draw each other more if we saw each other more but this was their very first go at it. for a portrait enthusiast like me, that's always exciting.

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Saturday, December 6, 2008

morgan kessler & her dad

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morgan (portrayed above) had a portrait party with her dad (portrayed below). BZZZT ~ NO ADDITIONAL DETAILS WERE GIVEN ~ BZZZT.

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Thursday, December 4, 2008

erik shaw & rama hughes

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the rest of our family has been drawing each other for years but the groom, our new brother, erik (portrayed above) never had a portrait party before. he jumped it with both feet though! he gave us a great, weird pose to draw and put a lot of effort into his two-minute portrait of me (below).

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Monday, December 1, 2008

don meagher & lauren hughes

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my dad (portrayed above) never takes his drawings too seriously. while he put hats and mustaches on the rest of us, his two minute drawing of our mom (below) was actually pretty sweet and serious. aww...

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