Four Moth Painting Evolving

I got myself into a pickle on this one.  The environment had totally separated itself from the image, having become too cool against the warmth of the image.

Richard Schmid emphasizes (and I agree) that if the overall temperature of the painting is not in harmony, the painting will be off kilter no matter what else is working.  So my task since the last post is the get the overall temperature working together before proceeding to further definition of the moth.  This is close, though not exactly where it should be yet.

I've included my reference photo here as a reminder of what got all this in motion to begin with.  I notice in the reference photo that the moth's big eyes are hidden, and this painting will honor that.

I know what got me into this pickle:  I was thinking too much.  Often teachers preach sermons and then make the same error they were preaching against.  My constant sermon is "don't think while you're painting."  Just like playing baseball or playing a musical instrument, all the thinking and working out skills needs to be done ahead of time so that when the performance begins, the whole person can let go.  Inevitably when we start thinking about what we're doing while we're in the middle of it, we mess up.  Try thinking about every move you make while driving a car and you realize by doing so, you've taken your eye off the road.

Have a fine Tuesday.
Dianne