GRACE CONTINUED

Before the fix

Dearest Readers,

 Last time I told you the story of a painting called "Grace", named after that amorphous gift from out of the blue that arrives without warning, perhaps undeserved, but definitely welcomed as an answer to my painterly conundrum of what to do next. She is done. This painting. Completed. I am content after ten years of carting this big girl around with me.

 

Before the fix

Last time I blogged and whined about the intensity of its eye motifs, and the cheezy-ness of that dripping tear. All gone. No more worries. I quite simply, (timidly at first) toned down two of the eyes as a test.

One of the eyes after the fix

Another eye after the fix

I covered them with white paint to match the background, and quickly ragged it off. Then I brushed some back on, then off, then a lesser amount on, then I walked away, out of the studio. I kept returning during the evening taking sneak peaks. A few days later I shared these baby steps with my stalwart "Art Crit Group" from Atlanta via FaceTime on my iPhone. "Keep going," they said, "pick a few more to soften here and there".

I waited a few days, then last Saturday morning in bed a realization welled up that a gradual muting of the eyes in the lower half of the piece made sense with the arrival of Grace from the upper half. I plunged ahead, dabbing and erasing, covering and partially revealing. It worked! I even brightened the elements in the upper half.

Final painting after the big fix

The eyes now rest easy within the picture plane.

 

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I even painted over that pesky teardrop that spoke of sadness with a cudgel. I took a full view photo, and several details. Funny, the closeup of the central melancholy eye revealed a hint of the underlying tear. It was still visible beneath the new dabs of acrylic! 

This time I had no doubts. The tear must go in favor of a subtler image. I am at last content. My hope for you, dear viewer, is that you can experience this painting now in any way you like.

Revised brighter detail