[Corrections made: Fixed: background shading, window and sofa colours, cushion patterns, cheekbone]

I thought I would never finish this. =MsJ777's kiriban, although it was as much for me as it was for her Nineteenth century Lebanese dancers (or at least, dancer and apprentice) in a traditional Lebanese reception room setting. I simplified the arabesque, which gets scarily elaborate, but the windows are authentic and can be found in many large homes. This is one more homage from me to our rich culture that some are choosing to let die.

I used a completely different shading method this time, relying less on layers and more on a scratchy brush used with different opacity settings. I'm sure you'll see the looser and more organic quality of the shading. I like it much better this way, it feels much more natural.

I amused myself by expressing the relationship between mother and daughter through a number of small details. For instance, the woman is wearing gold jewelry but the daughter silver only; the woman's costume is elaborate and patterned, in contrast with the girl whose dress is much simpler and who is barefoot. It's also in the warmth and intensity of the colours, as well as, of course, the awkwardness of the child learning to dance. I don't know if you can tell that her headpiece is too big for her and the coins are dangling in her eyes, but there ya go.

Drawn and inked manually, Photoshop colouring, Illustrator for patterns. I have completely lost track of the time this took, but it's definitely in the 60+ range. Friggin' file is 1.5GB opened.

Detail: [link]
Reference: [link]