Statue Studies: Resting by the River God

14" x 11" Watercolor & Ink

This is a good example of why studies serve a purpose: split focus, color chaos, and a need to resolve awkward areas.  Solutions would be necessary before going further.

Cafe Navona on 2nd go-around

Just walking through, picking out negative shapes, trying not to work too hard at it. I am always surprised at the colors things end up; I certainly did not intend to use quite so much purple or for this to be a cool painting. But since this is a warm-up practice piece, I can't be worrying about all that. My goal is to aim for a fuss-free application, put it down an leave it alone and move on.

Starting to Paint again........

I tried to simplify this drawing, but there are still too many little fiddly shapes and a lot of "itemization" going on. I've tried painting this image many times (because I really like it) but not very successfully (those who know me know how I feel about layers and glazing). So, I decided that this would serve as a warm up exercise to get back into painting after my long sojourn as a mosaicist. No worries, no pressure and no expectations. I'm just going to work my way through, doing whatever, and see what happens. So far so good.

This is a waiter at an outdoor cafe in Piazza Navona, where Bernini's Four Rivers Fountains is located, and where there is a street fair of sorts just about every evening.