5-10-06: The Sword of Ruth.

I think it's done.  Not sure yet.  I will let it set on the quasi-mantle for a couple of days and see what needs touching up.  But right now, I'd say I'm finished.  Yea!

5-8-06: The Sword of Ruth

I've continued working on 3 dimensionalizing the jars.  I've also been painting more definite edges on all the object by adding more layers of the appropriate colors and feathering them inward.  I tried to improve Ruth's face, but I finally painted over it and started again.  Now she looks like Tweety Bird.  Her eyes are too big and her face too fat. But at least I have something to work with.  Part of the problem has been in making her look like she has a tan.  The models I've been going by are wearing makeup.  Makeup messes with the natural bone structure.  So one has to adapt/extrapolate.  Learning to adapt is difficult.  Even so, completion isn't that far away.

5-1-06: The Sword of Ruth

Off and on for the last week I've been working on shaping the jars.  It's very hard to define the edges, make them three dimensional, get the shading right, etc.  So I've been experimenting.  Often I end up with the look of an outline along the edges rather than a highlight.  I've also been reshaping some of the rocks.  The brushes I've been using are the synthetic #4 flat brush, the #4 sable brush, the small script brush and once in a while a Manet filbert bristle brush.  Still have more work to do on the jars.  Tonight I also worked on Raven's jeans.

4-22-06: The Sword of Ruth

I added/underpainted three more jars.  I worked on the pouches on the donkey's back and on shading the donkey.  It's looking a little more 3 dimensional.  I also added a pile of dirt in the left corner as an eye stopper.  Doing a pile of dirt is hard.

4-21-06: The Sword of Ruth

I added a blanket to the donkey's back, along with pouches.  Not sure what color to make it, so I'm experimenting.

4-19-06: The Sword of Ruth

Phil said Raven's head in the painting was too large so I cut it down a little.  I added more highlight to the face.  It now has more definition, although the cheeks are too puffy.  I also whitened up her blouse.  I worked a little on Ruth's robe, adding burnt sienna and a little black.  After that I worked on the donkey, adding highlights and shaping.  The highlights are sunshiney in color.  The donkey I'm going by has the sun on the wrong side, so I need to translate the yellowish color to shades of blue, I think.  I worked on making its knees more knobby.  I also added a little shading to Ruth's face.  Painting tiny faces is a challenge.  I'm using a round synthetic bristlette, and the small scriptliner brush, sometimes the #4 flat sable.

4-16-06: The Sword of Ruth

Today I worked on Ruth's face, her robe and a little on the donkey.  But in general I was frustrated because of the Otto painting, so I didn't accomplish much.

4-15-06 : The Sword of Ruth

I worked on the donkey using shades of blue on the dark side of the leg, yellow ocre and white on the light side and variations of brown, grey and Payne's Grey for shaping the body.  I also added an eye on the crouching woman and a little more shading on Ruth.  Mostly I used the filbert and flat sable brushes.

4-13-06: The Sword of Ruth

Last night I blocked in the modern day woman.  Then today I worked a little more on shading the jars and added more layers of paint to the woman.  Also worked a little on Ruth's face.

4-11-06: The Sword of Ruth

I needed a picture of a woman in jeans squatting for painting a present day woman.  I've been searching all my reference material for several days.  I couldn't find one.  So, today Phil took a photo of me in the proper pose.  Of course I will have to take 15 - 20 pounds off of her.  But that shouldn't be hard.  Once the photo was ready, I printed it out in a couple of sizes to see which was best.  Since she will be reaching to the jar that holds the scrolls, I painted on the jars tonight and a little on the rocks behind them, adding more definition with Payne's gray and yellow ocre.  I had to play around with the shading.  It's better now.  They look more three dimensional.  Hopefully tomorrow I will be able to block in the woman.

4-07-06 : The Sword of Ruth

In working on the rocks of the floor of the cave, I was able to add depth by using much lighter colors in horizontal brush strokes with a number 4 synthetic flat sable.  The synthetic sable and the real sable paint brushes are remarkably different in size.  The synthetic is much larger.  I also wiped out the jars I did yesterday and painted new ones.  The size is better this time.  I started working on the donkey.  It now looks like it has an enlarged shoulder and is a bit deformed.  The picture I have to go by has the light source on the wrong side and is quite blurry.  I need to adjust the shading.

4-6-06: The Sword of Ruth

I wiped out, painted in and wiped out again parts of Ruth's face.  Finally her eyes look less buggy and her face less witchy.  But she no longer has a mouth or much of a nose.  I added a couple of jars and an unrolled scroll.  I'm having a problem figuring out what color to use for the scroll.  The jars are the wrong size and dimensions.

4-01-06 : The Sword of Ruth

Tonight I focused on Ruth's face.  I used a small round synthetic bristlette brush.  The face changed from ghoulish to down right ugly to looks okay but not what I picture in my mind.  My problem with doing faces is that if I'm not doing a specific person, the image I see in my mind does not match the photos I find to go by.  The image in my mind is blurry and does not come with the appropriate shading.  So I can't just look in my mind and paint that.  Usually I use several photos of different people and create a synthesis.  When I am painting a small face, I need to make sure all the grain on the canvas is filled in, so the painting isn't changed by interference from the threads.  I also painted a little on the hands and feet but at this point they need a lot of work.

3-29-06: The Sword of Ruth

I painted more on the background rocks today.  Added in oranges and yellows for areas that were in the sun and blues and blacks for in the shade.  I also tried to do a little in the layering of the sedimentary rock.  It's hard to do without it looking like a paint by number.

3-24-06: The Sword of Ruth

First I worked on the background sky.  I had thought by looking at the photo that there were mountains in the background.  I decided there were faint clouds instead.  So on the left side I added more layers of paint.  On the right side of the sky the main influence was the yellowness of a setting sun.  This also spread across the landscape.  So I painted that in with several shades of pale yellow and then a yellow ochre wash.  After that I painted more variation in color on the second layer back of rock formations.  I added more black to Ruth's hair and a little color change to her face.

3-23-06: The Sword of Ruth

I finally underpainted the woman, Ruth, and her donkey just inside the cave.  The reason it has taken so long to get back to the painting is that I've been searching for a good picture of a woman in a robe.  I finally had to combine several images to get the one I want.  Hopefully now I can move on with the painting.

2-20-06: Sword of Ruth Cover Art

Today I underpainted the background for my book cover for The Sword of Ruth.  It's a cave-desert scene.