Cat 70

Cat 70, Lizzy
12" x 12", acrylic on board

From a shot taken in 2012. This painting was fast, and I didn't over fuss it for a change.
Again with the goal of softening edges, and brush strokes showing. Worked with the three primary colors: ultramarine blue, cad red light and cad yellow light. And White.
I like the softer approach of neutral colors and lower contrast, with only a few detailed lines.

Cat 69 Lizzy in the studio #2

Cat 69, Lizzy in the Studio #2
9 x 12", acrylic on board

Using the same photo reference as the previous painting. In a vertical format instead of square, and the color base is blue and orange (mix using cad red light & yellow light).
This was a response to the ongoing struggle with #68. I wanted to try a different approach, working with a more neutral pallet. Drawing with the paint using a filbert shaped brush resulted in a looser line quality. Still a little rigid, but heading in a good direction.

Cat 68 Lizzy in the studio #1

Cat 68, Lizzy in the Studio
12 x 12", acrylic on board

From a shot taken in 2011. The idea was to work "looser", let brush strokes show, and have softer edges on the forms. I used a limited palette of red and green as the base colors, modified with white and blue.

I puttered ineffectively for months on this. I neglected to get the proportions and the placement on the board correct to start with- I automatically plop the subject in the center.
And then, I was reluctant to paint over the (very) few areas that I was happy with.

I shelved it for a few months, pulled it out to work on it again, and finally threw in the towel and painted over the whole darned thing.

Lessons learned:
Make better choices when selecting a photo to work from and pay attention to the crop & composition.
Sometimes walking away from a problem painting for a long time can be very enlightening.
 And if it's clearly bombing, it's best to stop and make a fresh start.