Vaughn - stages 1 to 3

I came across a couple of closed-down motels in a run-down part of a town called Vaughn, New Mexico. For this painting I have combined the sign of one with the buildings of the other for this latest addition to my Roadside America series. Like the last one, "Topeka Storage", I am designing it around two blocks of colour, pink and purple although there will be variations in both sections. As you can see I am planning a burst of light from the setting sun reflected in a window near the left of the picture, everything else in the painting will have their values measured against this, the lightest part of the picture. Stage 1 was "drawn up" yesterday morning with a small bristle brush using a mix of Burnt Sienna and Winsor Violet thinned with Liquin and Lukas Number 5 Medium to ensure it being dry for the afternoon session. In the afternoon I rubbed in washes of pink and purple thinned with Liquin and turpentine with a rag and left it to dry overnight. Today I have started to add colour and some tonal work to indicate which areas will be receiving some weak light from the setting sun.