Spirit Helper

After the mental anguish of my previous series of paintings, I started using some reference for my figures, not to copy them but to use as a starting point for shape and anatomy. So here's what I came up with. I'm still starting my paintings without really knowing how I want them too look, they just emerge as I go and things get changed around a lot sometimes. There's a few areas I would still change or finish off better but I've left it alone for now since I have a tendency go back and make a mess of things, so I'm a little scared to do the touch ups needed. 

The first picture is the finished version so far. I'm rather liking it. It came from a place far away from where I started as can be seen in the photo series below.

I wasn't loving the bear too much, so out it came and was replaced with another...oh how to let go of attachments to certain things, kind of like a life lesson.

This was my starting place which is actually on top of another painting I didn't finish. The small figure in the background is from the old painting. I rather liked it but as you can see he didn't end up in the final painting....letting go of attachments again. I look at this forlorn blue face and wonder what sort of pain is coming out through my painting. When I look at this early version and compare it to the finished one, I rather like this one better for it's raw energy and emotion. It's always a struggle as a painter to know when to stop and how to keep that first magical energy from getting too refined. It's a hard balancing act indeed.