Great pieces! I liked them both, but the first one is the one I'd like to hang on my wall.

What a treat!
 

Just gorgeous, Richard!

Richard, these are wonderfully done and I like the subtle use of the optical red. I am puzzled however by the strong brown line from the top of her shoulder down along her right breast. Is my monitor playing tricks with me or was that line intentional?

Thank you all for your kind comments. Richard, thank you for the "fresh eye". Now as I look at the monitor image, that line jumps right out at me, and it is totally inappropriate.

With apologies for whatever vagaries reproduction has wrought, and the variation from monitor to monitor, I am aware of two things, at least as far as I'm seeing that piece on my own monitor . . . it is appearing much warmer, and the "op red" lines are less subtle than in the original.

As to the offending brown line, now I have to go and see if it's as annoying in real life as it appears here . . . it's currently in an exhibit through the end of November, but I'll check it out Thursday . . .

Back from the front! I found the original presents less distinctions of the "op red" and similar tones than the monitor image does. That said, the upper end of the "wicked line" intended to be another fold at the juncture of arm and toso, is rather overdone. In "real life" it does not connect with a similar warm tone at the base of the breast, as the monitor image suggests, but when I get it back, I'm going to make a change in that passage, thank you, Richard for the fresh view, most appreciated!

The beauty of this forum is that we can get a fresh eye when we need it. I did a painting which I really liked, but every time I looked at it I knew something was wrong. It didn't get framed for a year because of that "wrongness", but I still couldn't figure out what was bothering me.

Then One day I asked one of my artist friends who was visiting from the east coast if he could figure out what was bothering me. In about 30 seconds he said the highlights on the shrubs in the background were the same value as and were competing with the highlights in the foreground figure. A few dabs of lower value paint and the "wrongness" was gone. A fresh eye made all the difference.