evolution
Lying in bed at 2 AM (I get my most creative solutions in the middle of the night when my mind is clear of all the other stuff during the day) I decided not to try the swirly fabric positioned horizontally, but to go in a different direction. The speckled fabric on the side of the face, which I think is very interesting, takes too much attention away from that gorgeous shape that I wanted to be center stage in the piece. This is the graceful curving line that goes from behind the eye down the face and into the lips. Doing it again in that fabric, however it is oriented, would not be as important as the speckled fabric around it, and therefore would be the wrong choice. Solution? Something the same value (because the value worked perfectly) but in that red violet I had rejected. By using ONLY ONE of the red violet fabrics, it would take center stage and draw attention to the shape that I thought was the most important in the face.
Here is where I was yesterday. I like where it is going, but that fabric behind the eye and down the face isn’t standing out as much as I would like. The value, however, works just fine–darker than the face but lighter than the eye. So it has to remain the same.
Of the red violet fabrics I tried in the beginning, this was the one that was the same value, so this is the one I tried first. It is very strong and stops in the middle of the face, so it must be extended into the lips.
Now that strong colored line runs down farther into the face, ending almost at the bottom–so the shadow under the chin is next….
I am liking where this is going. The strong color creates a line that runs from one side at the top in a curving interesting shape down to the bottom of the composition. This takes away the attention from the speckled fabric of the face, and makes the whole face appear more graphic and less representational.
Adding the hair will help define the shape of the face and will help me decide if that highlight on the side of her face needs to be changed. In the original photo, the value of the hair is the same as the value of the eyes, but I did not want to use the same fabric. I did not want the two areas to blend together as if they were the same thing in different parts of the face. This fabric, with the cross-hatch design on it is the same value, is also a blue with a purple under-color, and the perceived texture of the surface is reminiscent of hair.
As soon as the hair and the shadow under her ear and around her chin goes it, the face begins to take shape–literally. The dark value next to the white on the highlighted side of the face defines the shape of her face.
Here I have added just a touch of a golden yellow at the side of her face in hopes of lightening that side and providing color compliment to the purple/blues. I am not sure it works. When I get to this stage, I often find that it helps to walk away for a while and then come back. There is a saying about getting dressed up that you should look in the mirror and take off the first thing you notice. The same is true here. Walking away for a while and looking at it fresh, I need to take it all in with one glance. If something is wrong, it will jump right out at me. That is how I will know it needs to be changed.
Tags: color compliment, evaluating, making changes, value
