Towhead picking poppies

"Towhead picking poppies" by Hilary J. England
8" x 10" oil on canvas, 2013

I am continuing to move into the mindset of painting a large, multi-person portrait, with mother and four children.  This requires a very certain frame of mind, and to start the warm-up, to get the "juices" flowing in my mind, I have begun to limber up with small studies in the realm of where I need to be.

This study, "Towhead picking poppies" is another whimsical painting I did to get my mind into the area of expression that I feel is in the direction of where I am going with this.  Children in a natural environment, organic poses, etc.  As Anthony says, no Victorian stiffness, haha.  A more expressive, true, and honest perception.

So, I am gathering my thoughts, and am building my momentum up.  I will probably work for at least another week or two in this subject matter to be sure that I feel prepared to embark onto the project.  It will be a very large piece, and that in itself takes a substantial amount of energy to prepare for and to actually execute.  I haven't done a substantially large piece in over a year, so the time has arrived to jump back in.

Enjoy~