Scaling up - Is bigger better?

Original painting of Auro , 16 X 20 inches

Is bigger better? Sometimes "yes" and sometimes  "no". How does a painter know? You go with a gut feeling. That's how this all started. I loved painting Auro; it is a strong little painting that seems to be asking for more. I believe that I have more to give. 

I did 30" X  60"  raw sketch.  I visualized the large scale but I also felt that it should be even larger. Now the sketch is becoming a 36" X 72" inch painting. ( One might note that 36" X 72" size disqualifies the painting for a lot of shows and competitions.) That is not my concern but if you are a painter who submits to shows you would want to take that qualifying feature under consideration when you are deciding to scale up. 

With the help of ratios and grade school arithmetic I scaled up the major elements of the painting. I do not use a grid but I do use a tape measure.

Everything looks a little bit different when when it scales up. Larger painting? Mistakes are larger.  I am not a slave to my sketch. At this point the painting is asking more questions than I have answers for. Where will Nona go? What will I do with the green door so that it's not so prominent (heavy) in the center of the painting? Will the painting work at this scale? Am I crazy to do this?  Did I make the right decision?

I admit I'm a little nervous.However it's the doubt that makes it exciting.  I am committed now and so I am going to give it what I got. Stay tuned. As I tell my students "Hey, it's only paint so go ahead and make a mistake.".