I have for you at last, final, high quality images of my recently finished painting…These are as good as it gets on a computer screen.

Click above for a slightly larger version.

I spent a lot of time considering titles for this piece. On the one hand, it did start off as a simple figure study, sort of an exercise in various techniques, but it turned out to be a really effective, beautiful composition. After staring at the painting for several days, I realized that the combination of the pose and the facial expression suggested someone on the verge of making a very difficult but important decision. Her pose and the open space in the composition all point one way, while her gaze and attention are focussed in the other direction. Also, there is the slightest bit of tension in the way her left hand is holding her foot. So I have decided to call the painting ‘Deliberation’.

I had it framed this afternoon, and have just dropped it off at the Springville Museum. Jurying for the Spring Salon starts this weekend, and I should know by the 25th if it made the cut.