Lost in Thought

I've been meaning to do a nude for a while and this one is part of my boudoir series. I wanted to show a nude that was comfortable and engaging the viewer. She has a glint in her eye and a certain ease that doesn't make her seem self conscious or awkward. She is at ease with who she is. This painting was done alla prima, without an underpainting or a grisaille, and I started by mixing the colors needed for the skin tones. After that it was basically getting the shadows and tones correctly. I didn't know what to do for the background initially, but I settled on red because I wanted the energy to contrast with the ease of her pose. I brought in the red to her lips and nails to tie the painting together.