[Tom Edgerton]

Sergio--

I appreciate your comments, especially from one who paints with such vigor and force. It's a quality I could use more of.

To answer your questions, I usually accomplish what I want in about two layers. I try to finish as much as I can in the first pass, establishing values, highlight, midtone and shadow shapes, and edges very carefully. Usually I move to another area and let the paint set up--in a few minutes--and then come back in and work some more wet into wet. When the solidity and edge quality is realized, I let an area dry and then come back with another layer overall to restate details and refine color, and to pull out the lights, as this can be hard to do wet into wet. I usually adjust values and color with scumbling rather than glazing--scumbling for me establishes an "atmospheric" feeling of air and space. Someone told me once we don't just paint light, we paint air, and that helped me a great deal.

Maybe some day I'll be able to do everything in one layer, but I'm not that skilled yet. Plus, I'm beginning to appreciate the "built up" surface quality of several layers of paint. It keeps my work from becoming too "slick."

And, important for me, if I find myself becoming too tight, I switch to a tool that prevents it--a larger brush, or quite often, my fingers.

Again, thanks for your affirmation.