Oh, Rob, how nice! I just finished commenting on another thread and I saw this pop up. It is so nice to know that at least some people were looking forward to seeing this in Unveilings, because to tell the truth I thought we had beat it to death over in the WIP section. So your comments are very much appreciated. Yes, it was quite an experience having the process watched over by so many artists. Once in a while one of my artist friends will drop by my studio and citique a piece I'm working on, or I'll drop by their studio and do the same, but that's nothing compared to what happens on the Forum. I really valued the experience, the suggestions, and the discussion that went on.

Alex,

Just thought I'd add one more note about synesthesia (sorry - couldn't resist - it's a fascinating subject to me). Definitely hard-wired - MRI's have been done that bear out some evidence for this. For an interesting read on the subject, try The Man Who Tasted Shapes, by Richard E. Cytowic.

Brilliant pink is not really that useful as a color straight out of the tube but is very helpful in mixtures. I use it to cool down light areas, especially to prevent skintones from getting too orange. It's also handy in features that are normally warm but where you don't want them actually red, or orange.

I also use Pthalo green in the same way: not as a color straight out of the tube, but to cool down some darks. Pthalo isn't on my palette that often, though, because it has such pigment power that it gets into everything if you're not careful. Brilliant Pink isn't that powerful.

Here's where I thought it might have been used on this painting, for example:

Synethesia in pink
 

That makes total sense that synesthesia is inherited, though I would think every individual would have a slightly different version of it.

Aha! So that is the pink! I think I used W&N permanent rose, maybe mized with Gamblin perylene red, in those areas, and in the dress.The perm. rose is a bit bluer than the perylene red. Below you will see both of them pure and mixed with titanium white.

Left: perylene red
Right: perm. rose

Gorgeous Alex!! Everything in this works so well together. The harp has such presence and she is just moving. Beautiful and inspiring!

Hmmmm. . . on the synesthesia thing -- my son describes smells in color. That one kind of threw me. :bewildere

Terri, thank you--again! (The first thank you was for cheering me on during the WIP. )

So your son associates colors with smells. Is he talented in art, too? I would not be the least bit surprised to hear that he is.

Alex,
I love this painting. It has a wonderful feel to it. I just read your WIP posts and it was very informative and interesting. Thanks so much for taking the time to share!
Mark

Mark, thank you so much! It was both fun and helpful to paint this with a WIP going. I got so many helpful suggestions and encouragement, it was like having a bunch of artist friends over every day to check the progress and keep me on track. So I'm glad you liked reading it.

Wow!
 

I just saw this today. Thanks Alex! I had a visit to her studio and saw many treats in progress. The Harpist is a painting that must be seen to be fully appreciated. The scale is wonderful, and the strings are so cleanly painted. The posted images do not convey how well this is painted.

Garth