All By Herself, wrapping it up

My attention then turned to the pier.

I added a stop to the far end of the pier and defined the edge too.    I did that by painting in shapes and lines suggesting of masts from freight barges and just junk. I also added in the main shadows from the setting sun, to create a more complete reference point for the next steps





I did not like the stern appearance of all the dark, narrow vertical lines of the support poles.  My remedy was to soften up those lines by fusing them with a blob of ink.

I wet down  a couple of strategic locations along the poles and applied concentrated ink to them and allowed the ink to bleed out.  This is sort of like the moss dots that are commonly deployed to jazz up or obscure flaws in a brush painting.

I continued to work on the different areas, all the while having the light source in my focus because I really wanted to showcase the setting sun with a good dose of elongated shadows.

I worked slowly and laboriously to make my tableware assume a more dramatic look, taking care to not over-paint it.  I darkened the flat areas on the table ever so slightly, using my brush wash, thus the unpainted areas looked brighter.  This helped to put a sparkle on the water glass. The water glass closest to the bottom would be a prime example of this effect.   Being hasty has always been my Achilles Heel so I was mindful.  I also took pains to not cover up the water marks, especially on my back lit person of interest.  I really wanted her to have that halo.

Finally joint lines were added to the cement surface on the pier.  That and  the various angled lines

in the painting helped to establish a perspective, a vanishing point for this painting.

I know everything that I have done so far is a far cry from the traditional Chinese Brush painting.  I just felt frisky and rebellious;  I was not going to be bound.

My final touch-up, for now anyways, was to add some texture to the cement surface.  This was done with the help of well worn brushes.  These brushes would no longer hold  a point because the hair had become broken and jagged, so they are ideal for loose splatter brush strokes.  The footprints they leave are fine random dots.

It was interesting how shapes and lighting prompted me to do the painting, but I tried to add the story of a lone lady to complement the scheme of things.  The conflict, or drama in this plot was the absence of a crowd at a place of multitude.  I used the setting sun and fading light to amplify the feeling of desolation.

For now, that is a wrap.