★ Painting: "Abandoned" ★

Good morning everyone,
I got a few suggestions to paint a house with a Halloween theme.  I thought it seemed appropriate, since Halloween is creeping up fast!  I played around with a few ideas in my head, and took some suggestions that I received regarding my overall painting style into consideration (adding animals, etc).  I ultimately decided that a good subject for a "haunted" house would be one of those big, beautiful Victorians.  I know of 3 elaborately decorated Victorians within 2 miles of our home (plus at 3 least more that aren't so elaborate), so we drove by them for some inspiration.

This last photo is of the old Wallingford Victorian Bed & Breakfast.  It is currently on the market and I would LOVE to buy & re-open it.  Unfortunately we don't have an extra $750,000 laying around.  Shucks.  I actually think that's a good price for a fully renovated, 6093 square foot 1891 historic Victorian home with 7 bedrooms and 7 bathrooms... but nevertheless...

I knew that the painting was going to be a nighttime one, so I wanted some color in the house so that it stood out.  These Victorians are also notorious for elaborate, over-the-top details in them.  I knew that if I was going to paint a Victorian, it was going to be a "go big or go home" situation.  Andy & I both liked the colors in the first house photo, so I based my color scheme off of that one.

Overall, I'm happy with it.  I didn't plan on finishing it yesterday, but I took a half day at work because of a wicked sore throat, and finishing this helped me keep my mind off of the pain.
I added a spooky old graveyard for effect.  I got the inspiration from the old graveyards around, where the stones are asymmetrical (and some are literally just rocks).  I think I was successful in making it look old.  I also added random bats throughout the sky, and of course, a full moon.
I tried to brainstorm about what I could add to it, and thought about adding a black cat on the porch, but I thought that it might look a little too forced or obvious.  I like subtleties in paintings.  I didn't want this one to scream out "HEY!  I'M A HAUNTED HOUSE ON HALLOWEEN!"  I merely wanted it to be suggestive.  That's also why I didn't put Halloween decorations in front of it.  I really wanted this house to look like it had been abandoned, maybe recently.  I think my attempt was successful.  If I were walking a secluded area at night and came across this house, it would certainly send a shiver up my spine, and I would wonder what stories this house might have to tell...