A few weeks ago, Pastor Alex preached about complaining. It is a sin. Really? Really. The opposite of complaining is gratitude.

So, instead of telling you how difficult it is to paint this mural on Rocky Hill Antiques, I will give you a short list of things I am thankful for as I work in what are possibly the most difficult and uncomfortable circumstances yet for mural painting.

1. earplugs!

2. shade

3. accurate projection

4. Funny songs by Kathryn, who has a song for everything. When we were projecting she was singing “I’m An Indian Outlaw”, and then she moved on to “Stairway to Heaven”.

5. Ice water

6. Being able to spike a brush from 10 feet up a ladder into a bucket of water on the ground below.

When my drawing students work on a person or an animal, I usually suggest that they tackle the face first.

I usually work just from the primary colors. The yellow is the only one here that fits that description, because these are from previous mixing sessions. The tan has the mysterious name of #1 on its lid. The brown is actually burnt umber, from when I did sepia tone insets into previous murals.

Who knew that this reproduction of a painting from a bronze sculpture had so many colors? Wow, this looks rough. It is rough.

When the people working at Rocky Hill Antiques left for the day, I put the ladder away and worked on the ground. It was a relief to be able to step back and see my work and to be able to reach all my supplies.

This is how we left our Indian Outlaw when I moved to ground level.

It is photographing darker and not as yellow as real life. When the blue paint arrives, I will mix a lighter batch and redo all the blue. Maybe.