This week I plunged back into fresco painting.  I worked on a project under my mentor Ben Long IV back in 2006 in Crossnore, NC, grinding color, pouncing drawings and helping with the various physical tasks included in preparation for creating a fresco.  While Long worked on the wall, I had the opportunity to experiment with fresco and paint several test fresco panels on terra cotta tiles.  I soon discovered it is a very different medium than oil.  The color and value are constantly changing as the lime dries, but it is a wonderful medium for permanent figurative work.  It requires a great deal of preparation, a unique vision for the final piece, and unflinchingly completed drawings.  Here are some details of the test panel I did yesterday.