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I began this painting a few weeks ago after my daughter in a fit of boredom took it upon herself to dress up.  At that time the leaves were just beginning to turn and the roses were in their last throes of summer bloom.  I shot several photos and took color notes promising myself to paint the garden plein air to capture all the rich hues.  The painting started off on a good note.  The strong values of the figure were easy to capture and the black is a joy to paint with all the reflected tones but, whoops, I did not get back outside to paint the garden and now the frost of November has claimed the color that inspired me.  I have been teaching a lot and my studio time is limited so I was excited to get back to this painting.  I oiled it down to resume where I had left off and found myself half heartedly swiping at a few spots.  My vision for the painting had faded and luckily I was smart enough, this time, not to proceed.  Without a clear vision of where I am going it will be difficult for me to create the work I want.  So now the challenge is to find a way to give myself direction.  I can photograph the painting and manipulate it on Adobe Photoshop or I can do small color studies either way, I know not to proceed until I have a clear idea of what needs to be done and I can mix my palette accordingly.

Wish me luck!