[ross hamilton hill]

Rick, a painter friend used to reverse a small pair of binoculars so he could see a painting from a distance when he was working in a small studio. I noticed via f'book your studio looks small so maybe it's a trick worth keeping up your sleeve. I think it helps see the composition although I have never used it.
The painting is actually quite powerful in a macabre way for me, the missing teeth makes this seem a real skull, perhaps from an archaelogical dig, with parts missing, eaten by scavengers etc. I really did think of the Phantom comic book character as I had a skull ring when a kid. It's not for me a piggy bank at all, it's a potent reminder of our mortality. It really jumps out at you. I find it quite confronting.