There’s an academic holiday today which meant that after I had taken care of the administrative stuff I had to do in preparation for the next couple of weeks I was able to spend some serious time in the studio.
I fixed the ribs that were not quite in the right place, so now the cage feels more egg-shaped and even, then worked on the pelvis and tail feathers. I’m very pleased with this, although I had to move the coccyx again (third time’s a charm, right?). Â I made the feathers very fast, using a glaze of Van Dyke brown, then taking much of it away with a textured rag, then adding a little definition with a OO lining brush. I’m still not thrilled with the spine, so I’ll rework that pretty soon to make it more accurate and to add highlight and shadows.
The easel is holding the painting nice and high, with about a four foot clearance to the bottom of the frame from the floor. What a fabulous piece of equipment! It makes it so easy to move this huge canvas around.
