FINALLY FINISHED !

I photographed the painting and while I was looking at it I found a few areas I wasn't happy with. I thought I would post both so you can see what subtle changes do to a painting. The first thing I noticed....I had stepped away from the painting. I had painted it flat on the table, which gives a distorted perspective. It makes a big difference viewing the painting from a distance....as I was saying, what I noticed was a shadow on her upper lip that seemed too dark, her chin didn't seem quite right and the blue jacket stopped too abruptly and too soon. I was trying to leave the back of the head and garment vague to create a stronger sense of triangular shapes. I had a little tinted gesso left from painting #1, so I was able to go lighter with opaque or semi opaque and improved the final painting.

I really like this surface a lot. It was fun to paint on. I was very surprised that the tissue didn't disintegrate. Next time, I would like to try adding additional texture with Japanese lacy patterns. I am out of texture as a design element for this series, so I will put it on hold for awhile.

I am going to send in some entries for the next "Strokes of Genius" book by Northlight. I was reviewing my images last night and saw quite a few by many of you that are worth entering. Especially the "wire sculpture" drawings. You can download the entry form from the website: http://www.artistsmagazine.com/Strokes2-entry-form.pdf It is only $7 for one entry. I was reading a comment by H. C. Dodd, an award winning watercolorist who started painting seriously at age 67, 16 years ago. (At least I didn't wait that long!) She said "Competitions help you keep score and measure your growth. If you don't try, you've already voted yourself a rejection." The deadline is March 31st. You can submit digital images burned onto a CD as well as slides. DON'T WAIT UNTIL THE LAST MINUTE!