A deeper look into one of 250 portraits artist Ken Foster did in 2015

Hot Sketch: Cate, the right brain/left brain lady who went to Belize

Tue, 12/15/2015 - 10:15am

    In 2015, Sketch Artist Ken Foster started a project to draw or paint 250 portraits of friends, colleagues and acquaintances he’s met over the years and title it The Portrait Project. Here are Midcoast people you might recognize. For privacy’s sake, Foster only refers to them by their first name. See our original story here.

    Cate

    This is Cate. She's an accountant. We both like to do life drawing so that's usually where I see her. Cate didn't think I was going to do her portrait because I "friended" her after I started the project. Boy, is she going to be surprised.


    Cate just got back from a week-long vacation with her husband in Belize, where they were celebrating turning 60 this year. Asked if she took along her drawing materials with her, she said: “Oh sure. I took a lot of photographs and did a watercolor painting in the town of Hopkins. I was struck by the amazing colors of the buildings and flowers and the Caribbean sea. Everything has such beautiful, bright colors.”

    The place where they vacationed is a resort called Hamanasi. “It was just a wonderful break before tax season starts for me.”

    An accountant who happens to be an artist. Most people who identify as left-brain thinkers tend to have strong math and logic skills. Others who identify as right-brain thinkers, tend to express themselves creatively. Cate feels she’s both.

    “It’s a balance,” she said. “I’ve always enjoyed numbers, but I’m also drawn to the artistic expression things that can’t be described with words or numbers — that nonverbal side. If I don’t have that creative, artistic outlet, then it’s not a very satisfying life for me.”

    Asked what she thought of Ken Foster’s portrait of her, she said: “I was so excited, I just squealed. I didn’t think he’d have time to do it. We became Facebook friends while he was in the midst of the project. So, when the portrait popped up, I was totally surprised.”

    The photo that Ken chose to do the portrait from was on Cate’s Facebook page.

    “It’s a picture of me in a tea house in Glasgow, Scotland, and I’m sitting up very straight and looking very regal, which is not my normal pose,” she said. “After I saw how he drew me, I thought, maybe I am regal on the inside!”

    Related stories:

    • Hot Sketch: Shannon, Queen of Everyday Adventures

    • Hot Sketch: Steven, the man who cross-referenced his way to get to Maine

    Hot Sketch: Terri, the author who used to be a watercolor artist


    Kay Stephens can be reached at news@penbaypilot.com