Painting space at the Upper Jay Art Center (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

Have you ever really looked at yourself in the mirror? Not the look to brush your hair or teeth, check your makeup, put on earrings or shave, but to examine your features and see what they say about you. Have you noticed one side of your face is not a mirror image of the other?

Imagine examining your face for several hours, first with a pencil in hand, then a brush, trying to capture what you see. That’s what Scott Renderer, founder and artistic director of the Recovery Lounge (Upper Jay Art Center), is asking people to do. So far, more than 40 have responded, the majority of whom have never tried painting before.

Not all artists are comfortable doing self-portraits, though many consider these paintings among their best work. Rembrandt created nearly 100, chronicling his life from a youthful emerging talent to his older face weathered by time and the challenges of life. His last was just months before his death. Though far fewer in number, Van Gogh’s self-portraits are no less revealing, as are those by Mexican artist Frida Kahlo.

President George W. Bush has painted his portrait, he who had no experience painting before leaving the office. He’s not alone. People from all walks of life have tried their hand at painting, and most find it to be an enriching experience as it allows them to express feelings they have in a way that can be hard to put into words or that they may not realize to what extent they have. Often, a wonderful release comes with taking those feelings out of oneself and placing them on canvas as the urgency of the emotions is lessened. The feelings are not contained inside but are now on a canvas where they can be observed, and thus their power is diminished.

“I’ve never done a painting before,” said Susan Doolittle of Keene. “I said yes because, well, we don’t have a lot to do these days, and I love trying new things. I thought this is a real voyage of discovery. You don’t always find out things that you like, but those journeys are always worth taking.”

Upper Jay Art Center director Scott Renderer sits in an Adirondack chair. (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

Renderer wasn’t thinking about that aspect of self-portraits; instead, he was looking for a way to break the frustration of not holding live concerts, plays and other performances at the Recovery Lounge due to state COVID regulations.

“It came down to, ‘What are we going to do now that we are shut down?'” said Renderer. “The most obvious option is we’ll do virtual stuff. We’ll videotape musicians. That’s not all that satisfying or creative. It’s what everyone is doing. Instead of being like the lazy babysitter sitting the kids down in front of a screen, I guess I wanted to be the babysitter who gives them crayons, engages with them and lets them tell stories and make magic. It’s the difference between watching and making a movie.”

Renderer considered his assets. He has a large heated space with excellent lighting as well as windows to the outside. He realized he could provide what all artists, all creative people desire, time, light and space free of distractions. He knew he couldn’t bring in lots of people but could invite them one or two at a time and provide them the easels, canvases, paint and paintbrushes. All they needed to do was reserve a time.

He decided to limit their palette to the three primary colors, plus white, coupled with providing them all the same-sized canvases and an array of brushes as a way of leveling the playing field. As an artist and theater director, he knew that limiting the tools would result in a more unified exhibit. He also required that people create their self-portraits at the Lounge, not at home. He knew some would grumble, and they did, but he felt the limitations would result in everyone, no matter how experienced, having to stretch themselves a bit, be it thinking more about color mixing.

“Scott made me feel very relaxed and not feeling any pressure,” said Gail Brill. “That was one of the nicest things. It was a beautiful sunny day, and the light was coming in the window. He had little spots set up with a mirror along with the canvas, paints, brushes and everything I’d need. The most challenging aspect of the whole exercise was having only four colors to work with.”

Susan Doolittle (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

“I’ve never done my self-portrait before,” said Barbara Kaufman, a potter living in Keene Valley. “I thought it would be fun, and it was fun. I never did it before, and I thought, why not? It was a good experience.”

An appeal to Renderer was the thought of showcasing the creative output of a diversity of people once the Lounge was allowed to reopen. As that date seems to be further in the future than he initially anticipated, he is inviting people to keep coming. If the final exhibit ends up using all four floors of the building, that to him would be a great success.

“I think it will be a celebration of the people of the community,” said Renderer. “And it will be moving. It’s already moving. Every face tells a story. I realized this is replacing theater for me because I’m dealing with people from the community who are coming in, giving their time, and are involved in making a character and self-reflection.”

“I thought the whole experience was great,” said Brill. “I came home thinking I’d like to try another one. On the one I finished, I had a real scowl on my face, which is easy to understand with all that’s going on right now. I thought, well, I’ve captured how I’m feeling. I learned that I could do my self-portrait, and it was fun. I enjoyed the whole experience. I think it’s a brilliant idea. I was happy to participate. I’d do I again in a heartbeat.”

Bob Segall found the emotional release to be tremendous. His only regret was stopping after three hours, but in hindsight felt had he painted longer, he might have overworked it. He was pleased to realize that while he can’t sing, dance or perform these days, he can still paint.

Barbara Kaufman (Provided photo — Naj Wikoff)

“I think self-reflection transcends the idea, ‘Oh, you’re going to look at yourself in a mirror and make a painting, and that will be self-reflective,'” said Renderer. “It goes beyond that. There’s a mystery there when you sit in front of a mirror and have to make decisions about your face and how you feel about it. It gets very complicated in a concise amount of time. It can get a little frustrating, but ultimately, it’s enlightening.”

“In the beginning, I wanted it to look like me,” said Doolittle. “I was having a hard time making the hair color, and I just gave up on that. In the end, I decided that I could make this side gray and this side orange; for the first time, I understood why painters might do that. It was fascinating.”

To schedule a time to make a self-portrait, either call 518-946-6074 or email info@upperjayartcenter.org.

(Naj Wikoff lives in Keene Valley. He has been covering events for the Lake Placid News for more than 15 years.)