This is two stages in the development of a painting. The sketch you see for this commission is very much second base; I've spent a considerable amount of time prior to this arriving at a composition which has the two principal characters, Ennio Morricone and Susanna Rigacci, posed in a recognisable way (usually one or the other of them has their back to their audience). Morricone is in profile but he is so recognisable that it works, plus his expressive actions make him even more distinguishable. We've juggled the location of strings and chorus to have a viable set up. The watercolour is a thumbnail mock-up to test the palette of colour, the lighting and, stemming directly from both of these, the balance and weight of the final painting. The mock-up, which is about 30cm wide, has highlighted some "don'ts" as well as "do's" but is not so far away from what I want as to necessitate another intermediate version. I will go to the final, larger painting next.