gaze 31 32x32" mixed media on canvas at 2:23 p.m.
2:23 PM: just made a few tweaks, but i think it might be best to wait till tomorrow morning to make a decision on whether or not gaze 31 is resolved.there's a lot i love about this painting in it's current state, but lately i feel a strong pull to deconstruct the image when it becomes this coherent. of course the collaged pieces on the far right do let the viewer know there's something more to this painting than a revision of vermeer's iconic image going on here. question is: do the biomorphic collaged elements on the right fully integrate with the face on the left? not only that, but do they really add anything? right now, i'd answer "yes" and "yes."
1:10 PM: i did a fair amount of work. you can see from these comparative photos that the white strip on top, which was bothering me, has been modifies so that it doesn't run all the way across the width of the painting. as well, i could see there was something off in the positioning of her left eye, so i completely wiped it out and re-painted it; one of the advantages of acrylic. the lights & shadows on the entire face have been worked on as well. now that i'm looking at it on my studio wall, i think it's improved as a painting. mikela will walk over soon and we'll see what her feedback is....later: as usual, she was spot on, so i'll be doing some work on this one as soon as i have a little snack.
with gaze 31, 32x32" yesterday afternoon
10:57 AM: the always critical 1st glance gave me an immediate needs more work message. so i'm about to squeeze out my colors & get going. pics will be posted periodically.