Right now, I am experimenting with just how much paint is actually needed over a sketchy drawing.

Wolf Study II is, in many ways, a return to the way I began creating art. I see myself in this painting. I see the many, many hours I used to spend creating intricate drawings of my subjects. I wanted spareness. I wanted detail where it mattered. I wanted the eyes.

As I learned to paint, I gradually let my drawings move backstage. I learned to let the paint describe my subjects, and somewhere along the way, I left behind something I had always loved.

I rediscovered that lost love with this study. You see, I really love the drawing.

I want to see it. And in it, I want to see me.

In this painting, letting the marks remain visible, being willing to leave some things unresolved, and letting the viewer complete them felt so right. I am going to explore these ideas more, and see where those explorations take me. This is going to be fun!