|
I agree with Mike and Carolyn. I would definitely try to find some more photos of these people in that time period and attempt to stitch something together. Optimally it would be nice to find one of the child with eyes cast upward so that he or she was looking at the mother, just as she should be looking more at the child. I would also try to keep a hint of the rocking horse. Although it's an unusually unattractive one it helps provide focus. The whole thing looks doable to me.
I'm working on a portrait of a couple which is to be a surprise from their children. I have a number of photos with which I'm supposed to patch this masterpiece together but I'm enjoying the challenge. His head is taken from one photo, her body and dress from the same, her hair and approximate age from a second, her face from a third when she was much younger, and his shoulder from a photo I just took of my husband in a blazer because I didn't have a shoulder for him! Thank heavens for digital cameras. Possibly Chris would have declined the commission with those handicaps but the people are attractive and as Lon Haverly said elsewhere, in effect, I'd rather work than not. Go for it, Clive.
By the way, I love your work! I'm sure the finished painting will be lovely - much nicer than your references.
|