Taking Portrait Painting to a New Place

The Model I painted from both last week and this week inspired challenging possibilities for the surroundings in which she might find herself, other than the gray studio in which we both were actually situated. I found myself thinking about the edge lighting which occured, because the spotlight in the studio was shining on her from the side of the room opposite where I stood. I immersed myself in creating an imagined setting for her within a castle, surrounded by stone walls and peeling stucco, and with light falling on her from a nearby window backlighting her austere countenance. Actually, her strong profile contributes boldly to the scenario that I came to imagine, as I embellished the scene using magnified computer images, torn and distressed corrugated board, modeling paste, and my acrylic paints on canvas. Although the painting still needs a few adjustments before I would call it complete, I came away from my day with a feeling of satisfaction, prompted by my creating the mood I was exploring here.

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