Joelle's Desk

Today exercise was Joelle's desk. I'm still experiementing with John Pike palette, and I quite like it. It's very intuitive to use. I really like the overall design of this one. The shape arrangement, repetition, alternation in size, value and direction. Point of focus with high contrast. My favorite things is the two frames at the back reaching the books on the left using the shadow, then using the book at the bottom to return to the point of interest. I still feel that my brush strokes are too stiff, I need to free myself, and throw paint swiftly. I would like more expressive strokes and gesture.