The Restaurant Critic

I saw a photo of this restaurant critic in Berkeleyside, an online local newspaper, and immediately wanted to paint him. I made several drawings, trying to get a likeness. And then I painted him twice. Above is the second painting; below is the first.

I think his expression shows my frustration rather than the serene smile you can see in the reference photo here. Below are the drawings, which maybe captured his expression better than the paintings.

My drawing practice had been left behind over the months I worked on an oil painting that I ultimately abandoned. I was rusty at both painting in gouache and drawing but you have to start where you are, so that’s what I did.