How long did it take you to paint that? is a question artists often hear. In the case of this painting, The Red Hat, several sessions over 23 years!
On the back of the canvas are the dates 1 May 2001, 1 May 2002, 31 October 2002 and November 2023.
In the latest iteration, the character was tweaked lightly. But the context was massively altered. Now the figure is strongly situated within a better-lit space. Colour choices and glazing make the hat and figure zing.
Instead of simply a nude study, the piece is a work about painting itself.
yvonnecallawayarts.ca 
Now that I am reminded of the before, great changes and the context adds so much to the piece. Great tweaking.
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Thank you, lynne. VERY satisfying when it works out well.
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I love the title
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Thank you Samplumber! It refers to the poem Warning, by Jenny Joseph:
When I am an old woman I shall wear purple
With a red hat which doesn’t go, and doesn’t suit me.
The work is/was a meditation on aging.
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