My figure paintings always seem to have a melancholy mood to them even when I attempt otherwise. A subject sitting still for hours on end with the only entertainment being silence from a deeply concentrating audience tends to lend itself to this result. Or, it is my perception and empathy that turns the paintings this way after having modeled during a couple of no-shows. Whichever, it comes through every time and my next goal is to inject life into my figure paintings with my imagination. Failing that, I will simply accept the beauty in melancholy and stop fighting it.
