Changing your Mind

I usually have a vision of what I want the finished piece of art work to look like, but in this painting of a Giraffe I changed my mind and painted in a blue sky and Acacia Tree. I completed the painting Saturday evening, and then washed it off Sunday morning. I teach art on Sunday morning, and I wanted my student to realize it's ok to change your mind and wash off a board. I then proceeded to rework the background to an old golden parchment look, and reworked the Giraffe. I still want to work on his head a little more, but for now he will talk to me as he leans against my dining room wall. I am showing both versions so you get a sense of how sometimes the same image can become quite different by changing backgrounds or other elements in the painting. I also wanted to paint in the Giraffe's long blue tongue, but I have still refrained for the moment. My friend Wendy went to Africa, and I have some lovely pictures of her on a beautiful lodge estate with the giraffe peering in the dining room window. She rode horses with other guests on a horseback riding safari and shared her pictures with me. She designs interiors of Private Jets, and used me to carve, paint, etch, or design different elements withing the interior. She is a fabulously dynamic woman with a great sense of adventure and stamina. Thank you Wendy for great pictures of Elephants, Giraffes, and Kudu in the wild. Plus the landscapes are incredible. Thank you for sharing.

I will be working on the second Giraffe tomorrow, and making the companion piece for the first.

I already have the frames thanks to the Aaron brothers 50% off sale which I happily took advantage of. The frames actually called out to have the Giraffes in them. Sometimes I paint without regard to the final destination, and other times I know the subject matter, the Medium, the Surface, and the Frame before I even get started. It still is work and a great deal of fun at the same time. Let me know which version you like best. I'm not going back to the blue sky, but it's interesting to hear your opinion