The warm yellow and orange paint I’ve added to the dresses so far looks incredibly bright over the gray tones that have been the work of the last couple of months. I’ll continue adding the colours onto all the dresses and the skin, then glaze them back with a transparent white that will unify them all with the rest of the painting.
I’m spending increasing amounts of time looking at the painting and thinking about what effect my actions will have on it. Next step, to render the shadows onto the marble and also suggest some reflections on the surface, then to add pillars and figure out the shape of the trees and blossom. The pillars are important because they will emphasize the threshold that the courtyard represents, because the Empress is the guardian of that entrance.
