The Cello and a Kind of Rapture

This is a new drawing of an old subject. The image of a woman playing the cello can be found in many old paintings, and I too have always wanted to do this subject as an oil painting. This drawing comes from some photographs I took about seven years ago. I have about six of these photos and they all deal with facial expression. The drawing shows that moment when the player begins to listen to the vibrato on a long low note. Take a look next time you see someone playing the cello and notice that during the long vibrato notes the face takes on a kind of rapture.

This is a drawing of the simplest sort. It is drawn with pencil on watercolor paper which was tinted first with a wash of reddish brown acrylic. It measures 7.75” x 11.25”. The drawing is signed and dated at the bottom right, Britell, June 18, 2001.