I keep plugging away

This one has turned into a slow process. I put aside for a few days while I worked on some other things. I put it back on the easel this morning. I toned down the white roof some , put more red reflection in the water and added some bolders to the near side of the creek. I still need to finish the foreground grassy area. I also need to put the road more into the mid value range. I'll let it rest a few more days and then finish it ... hopefully.

Critiques

I was discussing the value of critiques with a friend who is a successful artist. He said when he is stuck on where a painting is going he finds criticism or observations from a fellow artist can be constuctive. On the other hand, when he completes a painting and is satisfied that he did what he intended to do with it, he doesn't really care what anyone else thinks. This led me to take a look at a bunch of my paintings from that perspective. To my surprise I found a few that met that standard ... I painted what I intended to paint.

This one is an example. I took the reference photo at a craft fair. I was struck by the woman's liberated indifference. She was there to shop. the painting is oil on gator board, 10x20 inches.