Caricatures at a Company Picnic

As much as I love doing oil paintings at weddings, every time I get a caricature gig, I wonder why I don’t do this more often. There’s nothing I love drawing  more— or painting— than people.

This was a fun gig, because of the people who make up the company, which produces well known games for every digital platform. They’re young, smart, hip, and wear a wide variety of facial hair. Just reading their tee shirts requires some thought. And, of course, they brought some kids.

Laina and Mo at the Fremont Foundry, Seattle

Laina and Mo at The Fremont Foundry, oil on canvas by Sam Day

Event venues can be made from anything these days. The Fremont Foundry is a magnificent space that preserves an old industrial metal works, including a fully functioning gantry crane (not pictured). It mostly just lifts a massive chandelier, but it’s there if you need to lift something really heavy.  That’s in the atrium, of course, where dinner was served. The setting for my painting was the penthouse. The ceremony was outside on one of the expansive roof decks, as were cocktails, during which guests flowed in and out of the penthouse. After dinner downstairs, they came back up to the penthouse for dancing.

My painting depicts both ends of the evening. On the left, through a window, we see the ceremony, with the wedding party lined up against the skyline. It’s a small, loose rendering; a detail in the background. On the right, through another window, we see the guests at cocktails. Through higher windows, we see the changing light at dusk. And in the center of the dance floor, the couple poses with their mothers. 

The couple and their mothers

Dinner with Heart – American Heart Association Gala

I’m pleased to paint at this auction every year. The American Heart Association funds vital research that has saved countless lives.

Steping back a bit from the usual black tie affair, this year’s event was held in the perfectly preserved barn at the Kelley Farm (est. 1864), in Bonney Lake, WA.

The painting in progress— I arrive early and paint the scene, then add people during the cocktail hour, as a live performance. 

I'm indebted to Nicole Ryan Photography for this great sequence of images documenting the progress of my painting. Daniel Smith Art Supplies donated the Fredrix Pro canvas. 

The working palette

On stage during the live auction— the painting is finished, except for the buyers' portraits. At the end of the night, the winning bidder  and company will be painted in to the central space in the foreground. 

Painting from life: putting the winning bidders into their painting

The finished painting at twightlight

The brushes at rest

Dinner with Heart, American Heart Association Gala, 2014, by Sam Day. Oil on canvas, 24 x 36 inches

Live Painting at Northwest Corks and Crush Auction, 2014

Live Painting at Northwest Corks and Crush Auction, 2014

Northwest Corks and Crush is a benefit for the Good Samaritan Foundation, of Good Samaritan Hospital  in Puyallup, Washington. As I always do when I paint at auctions, I painted the scene during the silent auction and cocktail hour. Then during the live auction, I carried the painting onstage and did my best Vanna White impression as the bid paddles were raised. Then afterwards, the couple who bought the painting met me at my easel, where I painted them standing next to this lovely 1956 Cadillac Eldorado.

Aboard the MV Skansonia Again

A live oil painting on the MV Skansonia, a retired Washington State Ferry

Having been invited to paint at not one, but two tastings of the baking and catering offerings aboard the MV Skansonia, I did this painting from the same spot, but looking the other way. I’m afraid I can’t tell whether this is port or starboard, because on reversible direction ferry boats, both ends serve as the front of the boat. On an east-west route, one end of the vessel is designated simply as the west end, and the other, east. This painting looks to the east, mid-ship on the north side. For a description of the history of this ferry boat cum wedding venue, see my last post.  

One can certainly see the attraction of getting married on this old Puget Sound commuter carrier. I, for one, would love to live here. I guess I’ll have to settle for doing the occasional live painting of her festive events.

MV Saskonia

This is the season for wedding shows, venue open houses, and tastings.

 This painting was done at a tasting on the MV Saskonia, a retired Washington State Ferry. The vessel once made daily crossings at the Tacoma Narrows, where Galloping Girdie fell, and between Tacoma and Vashon Island. She served from 1930 to 1967. She has now been converted to a charming event venue, and decorated with furniture from a 16^th century castle. Her berth on the north end of Lake Union affords a marvelous view of the lake and Seattle skyline. The Space Needle makes a cameo in the painting, seen through the closed overhead sectional door that opens to the deck.

I love old wooden boats, so I was thrilled by every feature of this grand dame. But one of my favorite favorites was the nearly black lacquered floor.

Equal to the richness of this setting are the offerings of the catering and baking companies, shared by the Saskonia’s sister venue, the Lake Union Café, which overlooks the lake just  a few hundred feet across the water. 

Caricatures at Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart, Bellevue, WA

Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart is a middle school for girls, and a high school for girls. The middle school girls, grades 5-8, had a soirée for dads an daughters on October 18, 2014. I was one of three caricature artists, along with Lou Medina and Vincent Yee. Nice working with you guys!
Here are a few of mine.