Sometimes a painting drags on. Especially if it's a larger canvas, and especially if you don't like the direction it's gone. There's always one that sits around for months while you chip away at it.

My most recent battle has been with a painting of some old buildings I call Property, which only within the last few weeks have I started to consider finished. At 36x48 in size, it wore me down over a period of about four months. I worked in layer after layer, starting in oils and then shifting over to acrylic. It didn't seem to matter what I did, it was just turning out much duller than expected. Too tentative...it happens a lot on a big surface...smaller brushes just don't produce enough energy. I made the decision to work back into the painting with house paints and a large brush, dripping and spattering until it felt right. It was a tough choice considering it wasn't really a bad painting and there was the potential to ruin it, but since I didn't like it anyway, the risk seemed worth it. Overall it's a stronger painting and I'm trusting my gut.