2:38 PM: i just now re-wrote the text on my grey page, making it simpler, more direct. fewer words, always better. the link to the grey page is below; just click on it:
1:22 PM: after an hour or so of dancing around grey 20, unsure of whether or not i wanted to paint into it or leave it, i squeezed my colors onto the palette and dove in. as luck would have it, my fears of poor lighting due to the snowstorm were unfounded. as a matter of fact, the bright white of the falling snow, and the snow accumulating on the piñon pines outside my north window created an ideal painting light! no glare. just a consistent bright, even light, allowing my perception of color to become sharper.
the face now has an identity, but walks that fine line between portrait and painting; i believe i've succeeded in not allowing specific description to overshadow the painterliness of the whole. i always ask myself: "is this a painting we could live with?" i'll find out soon enough, when i un-stretch it from it's masonite backed stretcher bar and re-stretch it onto one without backing, then transport it to the house. but not before i let a day or two go by & see what my first glance is like tomorrow morning.
9:13 AM: we are under a winter storm warning, and heavy snow is falling here in the baca grande, and i don't know if i'll have enough light to paint when i finish meditating & go to the studio. this will be very good for our snow pack, but might not be so great for working on grey 20. here's a detail of how it looked yesterday afternoon; the collaged map on the lower right shows an area in british columbia.