This is a study for the final portrait of Madeleine that I created for Private Masks.  Actually, this “study,” as I so niftily call it now, came after a few failed paintings—six attempts on two separate canvases to be precise.  It is not my habit to plan too much when painting: I am of the “if it’s not working, paint over it” school.  But for Madeleine, and in at least one other case, I have had to be more disciplined about my approach.