Sooooo...
I have some more progress to report. I know I said I would post around the end of last week, but our children from Texas came back on Saturday and I spent most of the weekend and yesterday settling into a new routine of entertaining 3 kids, now that it is summer. I have found time to paint, though! I believe I am almost finished, in fact...
First, I started to develop more of the front cat and his tail. I also filled in all of the bare spots I had left from before. The background struck me as drab, so I added texture, there. Then, I realized that the painting felt a little out of balance...and that something seemed missing...cherries! So I blocked those in.
Then, I started to work on the cherries in a little more detail. I finished filling in the bare spots and deepened the shadows on the cat in back. I added a little more detail to the face of front kitty, while giving him some brighter highlights.
Finally, I worked out the cherries in detail, giving them stems and fine tuned back kitty's face. I realized that the composition wasn't right, somehow, so I pulled out the topmost cherry. I also did something with the background that I am not sure I like. It feels a lot less like water, now, and more like just green nothingness with a swirly thing through it. I signed the painting, thinking I had finished, but now, I don't think so. I will probably be reworking the background again to make it more water-like.
So, that is where I am, at this point. Any feedback is greatly appreciated.
