The rest of the story My process part 2

This is a continuation of a blog entitled: My Process ~ Dangerously Creative (part 1)

This is where you get to see the finished commissioned painting of Sara and Francisco in front of the LDS Temple they will be married in on November 22, 2014.

Sneak Peak at a portion of the St. George Temple
Sneak peek I put on Facebook as bait... I like feedback!
As I worked I took photos to show the progression and what it meant to add color to a white image. If you've seen the movie "Girl with a Pearl Earring" there's a moment when Johannes Vermeer (played by Colin Firth) is talking to the maid, (played by Scarlet Johansson). He is asking her to look up at the clouds and tell him what color they are. At first she says, "Gray, and white." He looks at her. She pauses and realizes he's asking her to see as an artist sees, and then she lists several colors that she actually sees in the gray and white clouds.

Unfinished version
I sent this image to Sara to see if she liked it and was pleased to have her be honest about what wasn't working. Her observations allowed me to correct some flaws.
This is the finished temple, (you'll notice the color cast from a cell phone photo compared to the finished painting photographed with my Canon SLR Camera) with unfinished portraits and no foliage. Sara observed several things that I was thankful she pointed out. Her forehead is too colorful, her hairline needs moved down, and the lips on her fiancé are too protruded.

St. George Temple
The finished painting of Sara and her fiancé Francisco in front of the St. George Temple where they will be married for time and all eternity on November 22, 2014. It will be placed on a table easel by their guest register. How cool is that?
Working with Sara and Francisco has been a joy. I'm more than a little annoyed that my college professors had the attitude that working as a commissioned artist was like selling out, and that the only 'valid' artist painted and created for their own pleasure, and it didn't matter if an artist pleased anyone else. Art for art's sake...What a selfish attitude! If I had known what a joy it is to work closely with a client, and paint what they want I would have been making money with my art long ago.