Lurking in the Studio

{Oil and Colored Pencil on Wood Panel, 2009}

I know it happens to everyone... You start a piece of art with the willpower of a million fires... and then something comes up, followed by something else and so on. Well, that was the deal with this piece. I finally made my self add the last few details so that I could consider it a done deal. I showed the drawing for this painting on THIS post. I wanted to try a slightly different technique for this piece so I combined colored pencil lines with oil paint. I think looking at a lot of tattoos lately inspired the black line art. I also just really love lines! This is a symbolism painting... I hoped to convey innocence, purity, strength and hope.
EDIT: As my friend, Sara Butcher, commented in the comments... "what about a background?" I had the same thought. I was thinking a wispy and light background but couldn't decide quite what to put there. Any other ideas? Hmmm... maybe its not quite a done deal yet! However, this piece will hang, as is, in the faculty exhibit at the Des Moines Art Center into October... which gives me plenty of time to think of a background.