# Before and After



## TerryCurley

Last October I did a really quick painting of a sunset with a girl stretching out her arms as if to embrace it. Well...like I said it was a quickie and not very good. So I decided to take it home from the flea market and rework it. Here is the before and after. 
Before:


Spoiler













After:


Spoiler


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## kpnuts

My honest opinion I love the first one, it is amazing I don't think it needed anything, sorry, just my humble opinion. If I'd been at the market I would have snapped it up.


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## TerryCurley

kpnuts said:


> My honest opinion I love the first one, it is amazing I don't think it needed anything, sorry, just my humble opinion. If I'd been at the market I would have snapped it up.


Hmm interesting. Thanks for the comments.


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## kpnuts

Sorry no offence intended I really did like the first one, I'm a nobody and have no business even critiquing anyone's work I love your work and am sure you will produce loads more masterpieces.


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## leighann

I like both of them, but I am curios why you changed the girl? 

I love the scenery changes, but I like that the girl is more defined in the first one. Obviously I know zilch about oil painting, so it may be some effect that I'm not aware of. 

Any hoo, @TerryCurley I'm sure it will sell either way. :kiss:


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## TerryCurley

leighann said:


> I like both of them, but I am curios why you changed the girl?
> 
> I love the scenery changes, but I like that the girl is more defined in the first one. Obviously I know zilch about oil painting, so it may be some effect that I'm not aware of.
> 
> Any hoo, @TerryCurley I'm sure it will sell either way. :kiss:


I changed her into a silhouette. It's unrealistic to be looking into a low sunset and have the girl be anything but a silhouette. The original had unrealistic colors, it just looked phony to me.

Thanks for your comments LeighAnn


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## dickhutchings

"It's unrealistic to be looking into a low sunset and have the girl be anything but a silhouette. " Unless... she's standing in front of a mural:biggrin:

I loved the colors in the first one but I can see how you felt it wasn't very realistic but that's what we have cameras for right? You told me that and it made me stop and think about what I'm doing. Wait til you see my sailboat.:biggrin:

Anyway, I like the new painting as well and I'm curious to see if it sells now that you've changed it.


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## leighann

I looked at it again and saw what you were saying. See!! I was totally art dumb on that one!! :surprise:

Beautiful painting @TerryCurley


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## TerryCurley

Thanks guys. I got up this morning and looked at it and had to do some tweaking even before I got coffee. I unevened the shore line and toned down the sun reflection in the water. The weather is stormy out and there is no light coming in my windows so the photo is darker than the painting really is.


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## dickhutchings

Honestly Terry, I think this would be absolutely wonderful if you did even more work on the suns reflection, taper it a little and give it a a little wiggle. Kind of like this.


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## TerryCurley

dickhutchings said:


> Honestly Terry, I think this would be absolutely wonderful if you did even more work on the suns reflection, taper it a little and give it a a little wiggle. Kind of like this.


Yeah I've done this in other paintings. Here is one I did in acrylics 3 months after I started painting. The difference is Yours is a Moon reflection as is mine in this painting. The Silhouette painting is a sun reflection. Much more intense. Maybe I did over do it some. I tend to go a little crazy with light...remember the candle painting. I'm not sure I really like the broken stream of light...I mean why would a reflection be broken like that? 

I actually do agree with you that the refection in the sunset is not right. I'm disappointed with it.


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## dickhutchings

Waves would break up the reflections, light on the crest of each wave. I'm pretty sure that it taper as well. Now you've got me thinking and I'll have to go look at some photos online.


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## dickhutchings

One thing I found, they taper just the opposite of what I thought they would. Bigger towards the shore.


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## TerryCurley

I think this is a little better. There is a lot of glare on this photo. The sun came out and I took it outside and until the oil is dry it makes that kind of glare.


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## TerryCurley

dickhutchings said:


> One thing I found, they taper just the opposite of what I thought they would. Bigger towards the shore.


Yes and that is something I have been doing wrong. I knew that but didn't apply it in this painting....definitely my bad.



dickhutchings said:


> Waves would break up the reflections, light on the crest of each wave. I'm pretty sure that it taper as well. Now you've got me thinking and I'll have to go look at some photos online.


True....but if the water is calm there would be no breaking up. My water is extremely calm in the painting.


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## bbbaldie

TerryCurley said:


> I think this is a little better. There is a lot of glare on this photo. The sun came out and I took it outside and until the oil is dry it makes that kind of glare.


I think it looks epic as is. Agree, the girl would be silhouetted against the sunset, and that was a solid physical law improvement. Then again, Picasso, Dali, and a few others did okay breaking physical laws. ;-)

Ultimately, the judge of our work is the public. I did what I thought was one of the nicest ink works ever this weekend, Arnold Palmer in 1960, complete with flat belly, bulging arms, and trademark cigarette. I posted it on G+, and was greeted with near silence. Then I posted a watercolor slap-together that took me maybe thirty minutes and received effusive praise. 

The moral is that you may not be happy with a work, that doesn't stop the world from clamoring for it. And vice versa.


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## TerryCurley

bbbaldie said:


> I posted it on G+


What is G+? I'm a terribly literal person and need everything spelled out for me.


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## dickhutchings

G+ = Google+/ Facebook for Google.


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## bbbaldie

dickhutchings said:


> G+ = Google+/ Facebook for Google.


Indeed, and it's a much more intelligent place, IMHO. Facebook is clogged with endlessly reposted memes, political rhetoric, and outrageous urban legends. G+ is a different world, more populated by artists, geeks, scientists, teachers, etc. Still a lot of political rhetoric, though, guess there's no escaping that.

The irony is that I get the most accurate feedback at G+, but Facebook is where most of my sales have come from.


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## TerryCurley

bbbaldie said:


> Indeed, and it's a much more intelligent place, IMHO. Facebook is clogged with endlessly reposted memes, political rhetoric, and outrageous urban legends. G+ is a different world, more populated by artists, geeks, scientists, teachers, etc. Still a lot of political rhetoric, though, guess there's no escaping that.
> 
> The irony is that I get the most accurate feedback at G+, but Facebook is where most of my sales have come from.


OK -- how do I get there? 

never mind I found it on my cell phone. I guess it's a mobile device app only.


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## bbbaldie

https://plus.google.com


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## TerryCurley

bbbaldie said:


> https://plus.google.com


Thanks BB, I'll check it out.


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## bbbaldie

TerryCurley said:


> Thanks BB, I'll check it out.


It's definitely a different world. You may find folks you know on there, but a more common occurence is to make new friends with folks who share your interests. I met up with a retired dude in upstate New York in technology discussions who has turned out to be a multiple purchaser of my works!

A lot of people have joined G+, many because it was the only way to comment on Youtube videos, and don't actually participate. However, those who do participate have proven to be overall more savvy than the Facebooker who thinks the moon is about to turn green because of planetary alignment. ;-)


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## dickhutchings

Wow! What a difference! Beautiful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


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## TerryCurley

I deleted that previous post because I wanted to put up a better photo. Thanks for the compliment Dick. I love how you nudge me to make my paintings better.


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