Eden Gardens & Rachelle

 Every time I paint plein air at Eden Gardens I am intrigued by the old "camp shed" hidden by live oaks. Last weeks the changing shadows on the old tin roof and the falling acorns caught my attention and I had to paint it.

Rachelle works at Cafe Bienvielle where we paint at a weekly model group (and also eat their delicious lunches.)
She was an amazingly good model for her first time.  We put together a more "dramatic" pose which I really liked....it tells more of a story rather than being simply a portrait....always my issue when painting people....

I was reminded of the importance of "the story" in each painting at a guest demo by Frank Fredrico last week.  He is a talented pastelist and tells a nice story in his work.