New Orleans Street Car Painting in Progress...

This painting is a 20 x24 commission of a New Orleans streetcar. By request of the owner I am posting my progress as I go along. This is sort of nerve-racking for me. I normally don't have people viewing my work until it is "presentable". Also, I have worked on it both yesterday and today and I pretty much got wrapped up and forgot to take too many intermediate photos. But I do still have a lot of work to do on it, so this is still a work in progress.


First the drawing...

This is from a photograph I took while visiting New Orleans one of the many times I have been since the hurricane. For those of you who have not been yet, or are hesitant to go I can tell you two things; one, you can go and have a great time in the French Quarter and Garden District, at Mardi Gras, eat great food, etc. and almost not even know there was a Hurricane, and two, you will find some very grateful and gracious people. They are very appreciative of those who take the time and money to come down, and the economy can sure use your help. Ok, back to the art at hand...

This is the initial block-in with some of the detail already done. The photo is not well done...the dark part under the street car is reflecting really badly. There is still a lot of work to do today. I plan to cover up most of the pink background showing through at the bottom...but not all of it. I also need to make the tracks make more sense. I am also doing something I never like to do and that is fooling around with my light source. In the original photo the day is very overcast and the light that is there is coming from the right side of the painting. As you can see, I am trying to make it a more cheerful day, based on another photo I have in which the light source is from the front of the streetcar. Plus, the owner wants people in it...not just people, but specific people....sorry CS...this is another one of my not so favorite things to do. But that is another issue for me to struggle with as the day progresses. As you can see I need to get to work! Bye for now!