The blank canvas in front of Rose Frantzen may not look like much at first glance. But over the next four hours, its smooth white surface will transform into the likeness of Ed McCracken, a graduate of Iowa State’s electrical engineering program and former CEO of Silicon Graphics, Inc.

On March 29, Rose Frantzen began painting the Faces of Iowa State, a nine-day marathon of live portraits of 13 Iowa State faculty, staff, and graduates. Though a week has passed, she still begins each portrait with a renewed desire to capture the soul of her subject.

Frantzen mixed paints and made small talk as McCracken settled into a natural position. She encouraged him to experiment with different ways to tilt his head so the light would catch his eyes in a way she liked. While she sketched a rough outline of his facial features, Frantzen mirrored how he tilted his own face.

 “I’m matching you, you see that?” Frantzen said.  

Erin O’Malley, campus outreach coordinator for University Museums, said the turnout for event was good. Many visitors were close friends and family of those sitting for the portraits, and some students from the Iowa State art and design departments came to watch as well.

“We had a couple of people who came from Des Moines and stayed all day,” O’Malley said.

Frantzen commented on the differences between the environments of the current space and the Iowa State Fair, where Frantzen will paint more faces of Iowa State in in July of 2016. At the fair, outside noises made communication between Frantzen and her sitter nearly impossible. But in the basement of the Christian Petersen Art Museum, every word can be heard.

“Though more people saw the paintings at the fair, in some ways [this week] was more intimate than at the fair,” O’Malley said.

Frantzen determined the atmosphere of the setting according to the comfort and openness of the portrait sitters. Some of the sitters told personal stories, while others preferred to sit quietly while Frantzen painted.

“Rose always does a good job of making them comfortable, whether that means engaging in conversation with them or not,” O’Malley said.

Conversation topics ranged from war stories and hometowns to personal beliefs and family members. Because the portrait sitters came from a variety of backgrounds, Frantzen could discuss nearly any topic with them.

“Somebody earlier asked ‘How do you deal with a difficult subject?’” O’Malley said. “Rose said she finds one feature she likes about them, and she focuses on their humanity.

“You can’t not do that after staring at them for 4 hours.”