About the other elements of the composition: the line descending from the fan represents a post that was in the background, and I liked it. The pinkish part below that is a section of riser behind the dancer that had some lighting on it. Without those, the dancer looks too posed and unconnected to the surroundings, for my tastes. I could have painted a more conventional background, but I don't know if it would have been as dramatic. Also, this is the way it really was: the dancer shrouded in shadows, and set off by spot lighting.
Note: I am a studio artist - I doubt I'll ever be a location painter. I'd have a hard time setting out to survey a scene with the intention of painting it. First of all, everything seems so vast and my eyes take in too much - I can’t process it quickly enough to hook it up with the myriad artistic possibilities. Music, which is the art form that has the most direct connection to my emotions, flows out of me more readily. Producing visual art is a delayed-reaction process for me, because I need time to assimilate all of the images fluttering around in my head.
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