Contemplative Lady

Seventh painting and second portrait, on a 30x40cm cardboard canvas, with almost only Phthalo Blue (had to use more Titanium White to hide canvas defects and overscratched paint), made in 6 hours.

I think I start to develop a serious interest in this technique and face features, also taking time analyzing pictures and photographs. :) The model is a mix of inspirations on Pinterest.

On this one, I wanted to use a more challenging color and see how I could manage layers in the background. Easy to do block in the first steps pulling down the brush to make blocks of buildings, and a little bit more subtle to make cloud late in the process with a rag.

Really enjoyed getting back and forth on the subject and background items. Patience is key as you go iteratively adding and deleting tones. Don't be in a rush if you try this. :)

My only regret is the result of hair strands. I added thinner to make those, which slightly make the values strange. Lesson is, thinking back about it, is I could have stop the painting earlier. Actually, even very early, the face was right and its draft style quite amazing.

Probably going to make more with this in mind, and with an entire character.

PS: Glad I did not remove that ear. :D