Campus Indigenous Statue

There is a prominent statue on campus that I paint from time to time. Not being a figure painter, its a chance to practice while the figure stays still as a statue. The indigenous man is wearing some type of crown and is making an offering or welcoming gesture with a fabric or beaded object in his hand. A yellow ochre cloak sits on an earthy red skirt decorated with ornamental green and gold. To paint figures on location requires speed, a person walking will only be in view for a couple of seconds. The rest of this scene shows one of the paths through campus, and the marble benches surrounding the statue. I rearranged some of the background elements so as to mesh well with the figure element, for example, the building on the left was overlapping the head, which created an awkward arrangement. The revised view gives the sense of the figure looming over the landscape, stepping into it.

Campus indigenous statue, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, September 2024