12/30/21 oil/collage, at 3pm, following the changes I just made
3:18 PM: I went back in towards the end of my painting day and simplified the composition, getting rid of most of the green foliage, which I found to be a distracting, unnecessary part of the composition. it’s almost there. when I cast my glance from my computer table, about 20 feet away, it’s on the edge of being a coherent, compelling composition. as usual, i’ll know when I first walk in tomorrow morning.
the collaged elements, as always, add a tremendous amount and introduce that precious, for me, element of the unexpected and unpredictable. the tennis player has turned out to be one of the main anchors, as has that collaged piece of one of my cut up studio drawings just above & to the left of her head. the entire composition appears to be engulfed by what looks to me like a huge, galloping wart hog on the upper left. the figure in top the center, with the yellow vest & helmet, was inspired by a photo I saw of workmen uncovering a mosaic. it had survived an earthquake, and as result, was rippled but intact, which is kind of amazing, don’t you think?
1:28 PM: another extremely windy day, as I continue painting & drawing the new one I started yesterday: 12/30/21 oil/collage. a lot has happened since then, as you can see. a few collaged elements have appeared, as has a female tennis player, one of the tokyo olympics acrobats and two fragments of ancient mosaics. phase 1, yesterday, was based upon a photo sent recently by a dear friend in germany, of one of their potted plants. the leaves are visible towards the top left quadrant of the composition
12/30/21 oil/collage, phase 2