I was going to finish this to a greater extent, but then realized that this would be a good stage to post, if I wanted to show my workflow to someone who doesn’t work in this fashion…
At this point, I have started the costume detailing, and have added the underpainting of the head of John The Baptist, as well as painting a unified shade that I will be using for my background painting…At this point, the figure is finished and her costume begun. I still haven’t decided if I will modify the skirt any further or not. When I painted it very quickly, it was just to set a few ‘colour keys’ and I painted it in a free and loose manner…As I moved through each step, I was waiting for the moment where the image said, ‘Hey Bozo…What about this skirt?’ Well, the moment hasn’t come yet, so I haven’t modified it yet!
I find that I like the way the style of the skirt works against the rest of the image, so I might leave it this way. (And I might not… 
)I let the image tell me these things…
The reason I include this little conversation with myself, is so you can see the entirety of my approach, and also since a painting is an individual thing, it is up to the painter to determine what goes, and what doesn’t…Freedom is the whole point of painting to me. And the panel with her name on it is more than just a decorative touch…I have always paid attention to the ‘negative space’ in any painting I’ve done…This is the ‘empty’ area around the main forms, and has a significant effect on the balance of the piece. All the negative shapes should work against each other, and create a sense of ‘one-ness’ in the image when you are done. Of course this, like most things I say here, is a matter of individual choice, and personal taste, so it’s up to the painter to decide…
NEXT: The final image. 
