an ancient strength (2007)

This one was a commissioned piece that I did for a friend of mine who has a thing for elephants(yeah she's weird).I used acrylics once again but tried to emphasize more of a traditional impressionistic brush stroke.I found that the key to making this painting work was to not get lost in the details of the background: use enough detail so that the sticks are readable but not so much that the subject is fighting for attention.Keeping detail in the face and using high lighting contrast around the head adds that extra pop off of the background, solidifying a focal point.