My purple painting of "Leo the Lion" (see the Astrology section of this website) was the fourth lion image created during a watercolor painting session in July 2006; it appeared in the Gazette with my article "Leo the Lion Brings Inner Child out to Play." My third attempt at Leo resulted in this image on a sepia toned, translucent handmade paper that resembles an onion's skin. The dark face with touches of pale yellow highlights sits smooth, calm, and mysterious, hiding in a jungle of wildly colorful hair. The best of the three lions painted so far, it met my desire for something obviously leonine and sporting Leo's favorite sunny colors of yellow and orange. It could have served well for publication with the article, yet something inside me felt there was more to Leo than a lion in predictably warm colors. After some reflection, it occurred to me to create something unexpected by painting a purple lion with touches of pink (on the color wheel, purple sits opposite yellow). And finally, my Leo painting was "just right."
