Two

My second post today--I'm playing catch up on a few items from the last few weeks.

First, I just want to let people know that I added a new "Available Work" section to my web page. It has the absolute freshest DGB paintings as well as a few older pieces that have not yet found homes. There had been some confusion as my "Recent Work" section is not quite as recent as I'd like, and almost all the pieces in that section have been sold.

Secondly, I had meant to post these two portraits that I completed a few weeks ago. They were wonderful, gracious sitters; a pleasure to paint.

Melt

The painting of the snowman and young woman is finished. It's currently being photographed and colorproofed by my friend Ken Woisard. Here's the final piece:

I chose not to add a third figure as it seemed to muddy the waters. Instead I added a bit of clutter to the porch and the red plastic sled filled with sticks in the foreground. The title (for now) of the piece is "Spring Snow". It has been a very long transition from Winter to Spring this year, so continuing to work on this series of winter themed paintings has seemed quite natural. I'm not sure I'll be able to keep it up once the weather turns to summer, though I do have at least one more that I'd like to paint before moving on.

Progress Report

Here are two progress photos of the snowman and young woman project. I just finished, framed, and shipped two portraits, so I'm back with this painting in earnest for the next week. It's moving along pretty quickly, so I anticipate having it finished soon. I started the painting with a light underpainting of burnt umber and white to establish the central figure. Now my palette has expanded, but not by much: ultramarine blue and napthol red are the only two additions. 

I am contemplating adding a second figure (third if you count the snowman) to the painting.  The left side of the porch is the most likely place to situate the figure. Right now the top contenders are either my son wrapped in a blanket and leaning against the post on the left, or my dog curled up on her bed. I did a painting several years ago that I have always loved of a wonderfully soulful hound snoozing on a porch. If I go for the dog as the additional element it will be fun to revisit the subject.