2:11 PM: the lip tweak ended up going further than just the lips, and included most of the area of the face & neck, as well as her collar. as a result, it's a much stronger painting, and has more feeling and immediacy. i actually feel like our 6am walk was a big contributing factor. we don't speak at all during the time we're walking; today about 2 hours total, other than those 2-3x we take breaks. the environment of the creek, with it's torrent of snowmelt roaring down the creek bed; the sun breaking forth over the peaks at around 7 and raking light over the landscape; the incredible rock people on the trail and on either side puts me into a reverie that lasts the entire 2 hours. brings me back to myself and allows an unplanned, unstructured contemplation of the work i'll be doing when we return.
12:26: following our most excellent trail walk this morning, i'm gearing up to squeeze my colors onto the palette to do a little lip tweaking. stay cool, philip.