colored paranoid

Hello, tardiness. This is the first legitimate painting that I've done in a little less than a year. ("Legitimate painting" being "actual store-bought paints on an actual certified canvas", and not being "ketchup spread with fingers on cardboard".)

I'm also proud to say that this is the first painting I've done without using any black. I tried to forgo white too, but the models I used had really nice highlights that the murky yellow just couldn't articulate well enough. In the end, my OCD tendencies dominated my budding "spontaneous & artistic" alter-ego once more. The two will go at it again the next time I pick up a paintbrush, so hope is not lost on my being one of those carefree and lazily hip art students, which would be the unspoken dream.

Interrogation, 16" x 12"

I admit that this is more of a color study than a real response to "contemplative"... I could have delved into the meaning of "contemplative" to attempt a thought-provoking (and ultimately more satisfying) picture full of deeper meaning. Unfortunately, I interpreted "contemplative" here as two females, one with a questioning gaze and one with a resolved gaze. The female with the questioning gaze is tilting her head, assessing the viewer (you). She offers a chance. However, the other woman stands in front and is giving the viewer a decidedly dead stare, evidently having already made her judgment. And to beef up this sausage link of bullshit, the longer hair of the women in the background could represent femininity while her concern represents maternity. The other woman could represent the modern feminist, with a sharper, masculine hair style and more defined cheekbones, a look that did not become attractive until after the 1960's. The make-up of the lips and eyes also reflect the differences between the two women. Of course, this was just a happy coincidence from the models that I used for the painting.

Everything was done in about 3 hours with the red, yellow, blue, and white acrylic paint using models from an old Harper's Bazaar magazine. This was also the first painting I've made where I didn't draw in the models first with pencil (maybe that's why the second model looks like a man). I just went for it with some degree of spontaneity, which was about all the excitement I could handle in one sitting. It's an overdue step forward.