Louis Carr is an artist based in Raleigh, North Carolina, who is well-known for his intimate and delicately rendered portrait and landscape paintings. “At a very early age I wanted to become an artist,” Carr explains. “My parents were significant appreciators of the arts, and because I was home schooled, I had the capacity to practice.” Carr’s parents were close family friends with noted portrait painter Marshall Bouldin, who happened to live in their hometown of Clarksdale, Mississippi. Marshall, and his son, Jason Boudin, became role models for a young Carr and inspired him to pursue a career in portrait painting. At the early age of 13, Carr started taking portrait commissions in charcoal. He continued to work on portraits through high school and into college, where he received a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Bachelor of Science at the University of Mississippi. “I continued commissions for the next four years until inspired to further my education at Grand Central Atelier in New York,” Carr recalls. After his time in New York, Carr moved to Raleigh along with artists Michael Klein and Joshua LaRock to found East Oaks Studio, a virtual-based live atelier that is “focused on building a community of artists and professionals who believe in the power of beauty.” In just five short years, Carr and the East Oaks Studio team have built an incredible virtual library that offers invaluable access to renowned master artists from anywhere in the world.
Morning Reverie, oil, 44 x 30" (111 x 76 cm)
Sunday Shoes, oil, 33 x 24" (83 x 60 cm)
A signature style of Carr’s portrait work is his careful attention to lighting and soft color values. For example, in his painting, Morning Reverie, Carr depicts a young woman dressed in a billowing white frock, lounging against the wall of a carpeted stairwell. A soft morning light is exposed on the wall above the woman’s head, casting shadows within the stairwell and reflecting the carpet’s vibrant colors—blues, reds and ochres—in the white of her gown. Carr’s own cousin sat in to model for the painting, which is part of a larger commissioned series that Carr worked on in 2020. This same skillful rendering of interior spaces is seen in his painting Sunday Shoes, a work that earned Carr recognition as a finalist in the Portrait Society’s 2021 International Portrait Competition. About the young girl depicted in this portrait, Carr says, “Little Ms. Bailey is quite a precocious child with bright curiosity and an elegance I don’t often see in children. During our sessions, she maintained a bridled excitement and gentle confidence in anticipation of posing for her portrait.” This was a commissioned painting from a family located in Memphis, Tennessee, and one of many portraits of young children for which Carr has become known. On his approach to painting children, Carr says, “My goal is to have the viewer feel this gentle confidence and reconnect to their child-like spirit that, perhaps forgotten, still exists in the core of our identity.”
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, oil, 28 x 34" (71 x 86 cm)
Portrait of Divya, oil, 12 x 9" (30 x 22 cm)
Carr, who often teaches workshops on the challenges of child portraiture, has a few key tips for capturing the youthfulness of a child, including downplaying the bridge of the nose, minimizing any bags under the eyes and making sure that the eyes are not too small. “Classic child portraits challenge me the most; there is a difficulty in portraying beauty that feels truthful to the tradition without being contrived or cliché. Part of my inspiration is rising to this challenge,” he says. In another portrait, titled Planes, Trains, and Automobiles, it is clear that Carr has certainly mastered the art of painting children. In this work, Carr portrays a young blonde-headed boy dressed in a whimsical white outfit and sat on the floor surrounded by his wooden toys. Again, the soft light and shadows surrounding the figure convey a sense of intimacy and warmth, creating the perfect atmosphere for such a private familial portrait.
Portrait of Davison, oil, 40 x 28" (101 x 71 cm)
Portrait of Ellie, oil, 12 x 9" (30 x 22 cm)
When not working on commissioned paintings, Carr dedicates his time and knowledge to East Oaks Studio. As an educator, he holds a strong belief in making art education accessible to all. “Art is much more than just learning the techniques,” says Carr, “but it most certainly is crucial and essential to have those.” This was no doubt a large part of the inspiration behind founding East Oaks Studio, which has continued to grow over the years and now provides opportunities for both resident and intern artists. With the studio’s paid online platform, members have access to full-length tutorial videos on everything from basic alla prima portrait techniques to the essentials of plein air seascape painting. In one of his portrait painting videos, Carr demonstrates his own techniques while working on a portrait of fellow artist Divya Melaluca, who is currently a Resident Artist at East Oaks Studio. Additionally, Carr has numerous free videos available on the studio’s YouTube channel, where he covers topics such as color mixing for skin tones, building an affordable palette, best safety practices and an illuminating two-part series on creating dimension with oil paint.
Ruth, oil, 14 x 11" (35 x 27 cm)
In addition to his work for East Oaks, Carr has been a frequent contributor to the Portrait Society’s educational programs. This past October, Carr was a faculty artist for the Portrait Society’s Fall Portrait Academy, which was taught online this year. Along with artist Kristen Yann, Carr led a virtual critique session, offering helpful feedback and encouragement to artists on their work. He also joined in an informal “after hours” session to hear from and connect with program attendees as they discussed the packed full weekend of events. This summer, Carr also participated in the Portrait Society’s ongoing series of Wednesday Webinars, offering an informative demonstration on making quick skin tone studies in different colored environments.
See more of Carr’s work and information about future workshops and events at lcarr.faso.com and on the East Oaks Studio website at www.eastoaksstudio.com. —