Kristin, 18"x14", oil on board

At the beginning of the session when I surveyed the pose, I was drawn to the strong diagonal line of Kristin's hair across the forehead. After establishing the hairline and the simple boundaries of the head, I moved on to colors without much of drawing. To go in tandem with the heavy texture and the brush strokes of the board I prepared and pre-toned, I began the painting by laying down generous chunks of various colors in a very direct manner, almost like putting together a mosaic. Only at the last stage, did I smooth the transitions of the planes of the head, being careful not to blend excessively.