Painting I - 15 Layers

For my painting class with Peg Trezevant, we were assigned to paint something at least 4' x 4' and have at least 15 layers of paint on it. I started by creating a collage of flat images of hair, cut from magazines, mixed with scrap satin fabric. I pinned the pieces together on foam core and sat the piece on top of my canvases while I painted. I built 3 canvases to create a triptych about 5' x 8' and translated the collage to the canvas, first using acrylic paint for the largest shapes.

Next came the oil paint. And more paint. And some more paint. Until I had almost all 15 layers.

The finished painting with a final layer of oil paint: