Here are some of the new paintings I've been doing for my show opening on January 6th, Devil and the Deep. Hope you can be there!

Devil and the Deep

New Show coming to MP5 in January!  Follow our event on Facebook.

Another update, incredible.

Wanted to share a commission I recently finished for a client.  Wanted it black and white originally, but I convinced them to go with a more faded color palette.  Happy with the light in this one.  Also have some more quick portraits to share.

New Portraits, Mural

Hey Folks, here are my favorite quick portraits from the last month, and a shot of a mid-sized mural I finished at a private residence recently.  Been a while since I made a mural, but this was a pretty simple job and went smoothly.

Will soon be posting some info on an art show I'm helping to curate and participating in. I'm gonna be focusing exclusively on this show for the next two months, and am hoping to create a ton of cool work.

Upcoming Charity Auction, Bather Finish

Have a new piece going up to be auctioned off to raise money for the American Cancer Society.  I'll be at the Artist Reception on Friday Sept 9th from 6-9pm at the Denizen Gallery.  850 NE 81st Ave.  There will also be belly dancers, musicians and henna artists on Saturday and Sunday. Pieces will be bid on at silent auction throughout the weekend. Hope to see you there.

Here is a shot from the piece I'll be auctioning off at the event, and a couple close ups of the process of painting the henna 'head-dress' at the end.

Hospital show

Here are some shots of the portrait show I have hanging at the Providence Medical Center on 48th and Glisan.  So far I've managed to resist pushing people out of windows in order to raise attendance.

Auction Piece, Mayor Visit, New Portraits

You can call off the search parties; I'm back.  First off, here is a selection of some of my favorite 3 hour portraits from the last month:

I'm going to be having a show starting July 17 of 20-25 of these portraits at gallery in the Providence Medical Center on 48th and Glisan...if you're going to take a look at it, hopefully it's of your own accord. I also have an update on the piece I'm working on for the September Auction. Here's my progress so far:

Haven't taken as much time on this one as I would have liked.  Probably will devote more attention to it as soon I put up the portrait show.  Finally, along with several other artists, I met with mayor Sam Adams to talk about my work and the experience of living at Milepost 5 so far.  He seemed nice; busy though, so it wasn't a long chat.  Here's a couple photos of that meeting:

Okay, that's all.  I'll try and update more regularly, but working this keyboard is pretty exhausting.

Last minute show...

Here's a photo of my paintings in Sam Adams' (Mayor of Portland, Sketch Comedy Actor) office.  I'm one of  8 artists from Milepost 5 that have pieces up through July.  As far as I know it isn't open to the public, and there's not going to be a reception...so if you're the mayor or work for him, check it out!

New 3 hr Portraits, Show in Mayor's Office

Have a few new 3 Hr portraits to share.  Getting close to back on track for the year now.

Also, I'm going to be part of a show at the mayor's office here in portland.  It's a last minute thing, so I don't know all the details yet, but I'll update here if there's anything else to know.

Early Swimmer

Working on a new piece for a charity auction in September; I have plenty of time to work on it so I'm planning to take my time to do it right.  It's the largest piece I've worked on in about 6 years; It feels good to really lay out some paint with my larger brushes for a change.  I'll update every now and then with my progress on it as time goes on.

I have a number of shows coming up in the next few months, so it's looking to be a pretty busy summer.  Should be fun.

Samples, new photos

Finally got some decent photos of the paintings from my last show.  I've added a few to the slideshow, and here are some pieces that haven't been posted here yet (as far as I know):

I've also added samples to the price guide. More to come soon.

New info and pricing

Hey everyone, the grand opening at MP5 was a big success; big crowds and a lot of fun. Thanks to everyone that showed up.

I probably should have done this before the opening, but I've just simplified my pricing structure and FAQ to be easier to understand while including lower cost options for those on a budget. Take a look in my sidebar to the right. If you want to do a direct negotiation or barter, I'm of course still open to that; just call or email.

I'll be posting more samples and hopefully adding online payment very soon.

Grand opening of MP5

Live painting last month went very well, thanks to everyone that showed up. The glare from spotlights was something I had not anticipated, but it didn't cause too much trouble.

Work on the 100 portrait project has remained a little behind, so I'll have to double time it for a while to catch up. Still having fun with the project, although I may start mixing up techniques and composition to keep it interesting.

This weekend (Friday April 8th-Sunday April 10th) is the Grand Opening celebration of the Milepost 5 building. Strange that the grand opening is occurring 6 months after we moved in, but what do I know?

There will be events all weekend; a full schedule can be found here : http://milepost5.net/grand-opening/

Heres a preview of the (unfinished) piece I'm working on for the 14 x 14 resident's gallery show:

So come by during the celebration to see the finished painting and say hello. Should be a lot of fun. I'll be in my studio #210 or wandering the galleries for most of the event.

Live painting Demonstration

Hi Folks, I'm going to be doing a live demonstration of a 3 hour portrait this friday (March 4th) at the Gallery hosting my show. It's 5-9pm, and there will be food, drink, and musicians. Come down to see my show and ask any questions you might have, then go see the rest of the offerings at the Milepost 5 First Friday event.

Takes place at the Milepost 5 Lofts Gallery: 900 NE 81st Ave, Portland OR

3 Hr portraits

Considering the lack of updates, It may seem like I've been slacking; really I've been a little too busy, and haven't felt the need to blog about it.

My new project has been to do 100 3 hour portraits by the end of the year. I'm a little behind, but things are going pretty well. Here is a selection of some of the pieces so far:

I'm steadily improving at isolating features quickly. I haven't achieved a perfect likeness in many of these, but I'm happy with the energy of the pieces.

If you live in the Portland OR area and would like to help out with my project by sitting, then contact me :

dhenderson@dana-illustration.com

617.888.3411

If you would like to purchase an original 3 hr portrait, they are $90 plus shipping and handling. If you are commissioning, I can work from photos sent through E-mail as well.