The Douannère finished

So they asked me to paint more realistically.  Which means slower, time consuming, plodding along.  But here is the result.  I think this painting rocks.

Il Douannière

120x80cm

oil on canvas

It looks hyper real but, like all my paintings, it decomposes as you get close.

The details show the brushstrokes and spatula knife but nothing can show the many sittings and different moods I wore as the thing developed.

I love back lighting.

I don't know when I started the actual painting of this, the brush to canvas when I sit down and look, not the preparations.  Those were almost a month ago.

This group came out well, no details, just planes of light.  Seeing the Slovenian Impressionists show at the Petit Palais was a good idea.  I was definitely impressed.

Now on to the next.

The Douaniere - working progress

Here is the third step: blocking in the third grounds.

Below is my palette.

The mix of colour is quite strange: Cadmium white, cadmium yellow lemon, ultramarine blue, ivory black and, golden ochre.  Years ago I never dreamt of mixing that together. 

Grand MArché d'art Contemporain at Saint Sulpice

Saint Sulpice was a fantastic show for me.  I'm just recovering, fairs are a marathon of chatting.  So draining.  

The favorite painting in my stand was the Douanière 

120x80

oil on canvas

I'm not surprised though this is just the beginning.  Often people like the debut of my paintings.  Yesterday I covered it with a mix of cadmium red and burnt umber and ultramarine blue, but I plan to bring it back to these chromatic tones.

My stand was on the second on left.  There's the church.