It was in late June or early July that I had a request for a painting with a human in it alongside their companion animal. Painting skin tones is something I can always use more practice with, specifically the use of color: how to get purples and greens to read as flesh? The commission took me a long time, and although I tried to keep a sense of exploration and play, as sometimes happens with commissions, there are expectations, and with that I find my willingness to experiment becomes limited, and consequently, so is my growth.
So, once I finished that painting, I decided to take on another portrait, but this time, of someone I know well who wasn’t hiring me, just to regain that sense of freedom. I was excited by the results and highly recommend this, no matter what line of work you do. Shaking things up is good!