Reluctance-Final

© Ellen Blonder

I painted over the sky to even the tones, lightened the pavement, and added details to Wendy's hair, clothing and shoes. I also wanted to add some perspective cues without distracting from the dynamics between Wendy and Bear. I think I'll stop now, so as not to clutter this up any more.

Reluctance-Painting Day 3

© Ellen Blonder

This doesn't look like much progress for a day's work. When I started painting Bear, I realized I hadn't gotten her stance right. Her legs needed to move farther forward so it's clearer she's holding her ground. I also needed to shorten her face and body; a lot of today's painting was painting over mistakes.

Reluctance-Painting Day 2

© Ellen Blonder

With a long holiday weekend trip, this underpainting was as much as I managed to do in the last few days. I considered added foliage behind Wendy, but perhaps I should put it behind Bear to give the illusion that Wendy's pulling against even more resistance.

Reluctance-Painting Day 1

© Ellen Blonder

On August 28, I posted a sketch of my talented friend Wendy Slick and her dog Bear Lee, based on a photo I took along a recent walk. I liked the dynamics enough to turn it into a painting. Wendy is clever and resourceful in her documentary filmmaking, but she's no match for Bear when Bear doesn't want to go uphill.

The canvas is 16 x 20 inches.