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That hat
Mike,
Of course you like the hat. I never dreamed that you didn't like it. It's just that the hat defies explanation. Lots of things that we like defy explanation, don't they? You and I understand these things, even if others might be inclined to misinterpret them. Not to worry!
But this hat does have some unusual properties. The actual crown, or top, of the hat is the upper of the two bright horizontal lines just above the brim of the hat. The confusing planes of light are masses of translucent fabric (tuille?) that are piled up behind the crown. This isn't so obvious in the jpeg or in the photo, for that matter, but it's pretty obvious in the actual painting. But you're right to point this out as a problem area.
In the photo you might barely be able to see that the overlapping layers of this fabric result in a moire` fringe pattern. I had no clue as to how to even begin to paint this effect, so I punted and just wound up with the confusing planes of light. I've been bothered by this ever since, but now that you've brought it up it's clear that something has to be done about it. I just thought of something that I might try, so we'll see what happens on that.
Another thing that occurs to me is that the edge of the brim, which is yet another translucent fabric, is allowing some of that tuille stuff to show through on the lighted side. Funny, I never noticed that before, either in the photos or in life. Maybe I should work on that area a little bit as well. That translucent band is what gives rise to the three value shadow effect that attracted me to this pose in the first place.
Finally, what do you think of the hat on the character in the painting in the background?
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