© Ellen Blonder
I think this is done. I added some red leaves behind the bromeliad, darkened, then lightened the sky a bit, spending hours touching it up behind the cycad and refining the cycad leaves afterward. I've also darkened the underside and beard of the goat, added contrast in the horns and fixed its face so those weird far-apart eyes read better.
In retrospect, this was a crazy way to paint, without even a foggy idea of where I was headed, finishing out the key elements and then having to paint around them. What's funny is that in the end, it doesn't look so different from my other paintings that are more planned ahead. I don't know how others manage to have a layout all planned out ahead. I needed time out to let this sit between painting sessions so I could figure out what else it required.
