Working Out a Composition - Part I

I've been wanting to do some videos on composition and narrative in oil painting, and beginning work on this new commission painting seemed like a good place to start. 

In this video, I begin a discussion of composition, narrative, and allegory, and begin the process of taking a rough idea for a large, multifigure painting and building and refining a composition. 

I start with a very rough sketch for the idea, shoot reference photos of models and props, and start working on preparatory drawings. I also begin the process of combining some of the preparatory drawings in Affinity Photo to start laying out the positions of the figures in anticipation of designing the background around them.

In upcoming videos, I'll finish laying out the figures, design a background to tie the composition together, work out a value scheme for the painting, and then pull everything together into a final drawing, ready to be turned into an oil painting.

As always, I welcome any questions, thoughts or feedback in the comments.