[Kimberly Dow]

Thank you everyone - I appreciate it!

Linda, I started a new painting on canvas last night and I am just sick at the lack of richness compared to the ABS. It did take a lot more work to get this done. It slowed me down, but maybe I needed that. I appreciate that you suggested it! I may scrap the one I started last night and start over on the ABS.

Garth, I am all into the textures at our new home in West Texas. It's a ranch and away from the beautiful house are chicken coops, a slaughter house and all sorts of old out-buildings. I know I wanted to use those in paintings, but just vague ideas. I know many of the artists here plan out their painting down to the last detail, but when I do it always changes after the model comes. This girl has a thing with her eyebrows that can make her look mad. I had to keep saying "Eyebrows!" to her to remind her to lift them a bit. I finally decided to go with it and work with her natural body language. She is very self-confident (the homecoming queen and all that) and seems to own everything she looks at. I did slightly vary her eyebrows and mouth in the painting - just by a tiny bit to make her look less angry. So that's it - the painting comes from the model herself and then I try to make some sort of narrative out of it. I like seeing how people read it. Patricia read it just like I did in WIP (she looks to me like she is surveying HER land) and that gave me my title, but my husand on the other hand thinks she looks like a girl just waiting to get off the ranch. That part is fun - seeing how others interpret the story.

Thank you all again, what a nice shot of confidence that comes when peers you admire like your work!