Portraits of the Palette - 2023

 

Mary Qian, portrait of George Zaremba

George started up the Palette’s first (recent) annual portrait show a few years back, so it’s appropriate that this show now honors him with one of Mary’s finest portraits.  His personality pours off the wall.

Muriel Christensen, Michael

Since the advent of Covid, several weekly open workshops have been broadcast over Zoom - and I always thought this was a dumb idea.  Why have the model sitting in the same pose for five hours — why not just work from a photo?  But the liveliness of Muriel’s  painting proves I was wrong.  

Sonya Sonny Zartman

Looks like an enigmatic screen shot from a television drama.

Was somebody murdered?

Michael R. Margherone

Done, quite well, in the inimitable style of one of Chicago’s most celebrated outsider artists, Lee Godie.

Tom Zamiar, Lady Bird Liz

Another piece that’s kind of primitive, but not really 

Very romantic - in a child-like way.

Larry Paulsen

A self portrait by our popular drawing instructor,

back when he was a handsome young dude (1987)

Doesn’t it look like he was about to add a background - like a landscape or garden?

In subsequent years, he must have decided  against taking  portraits in that direction, leaving his faces as islands in a sea of white paper.

Michael Van Zeyl, Lionel

Is Lionel some kind of magician?

His eyes seem to follow you around the room

He knows all about you - and finds it mildly amusing.

Soko Okada, Morning Coffee 

A little too self satisfied, if you ask me.

I’d rather have my morning coffee without him.

Evelyn Brody, Whitney in Greengold

Looks like a fine illustration for a young adult novel 

Val Yachik, untitled

A mysterious portrait from or former President.

Love the rim on his cap.