Thanks for the input. Both are complete. The shadows are actually darker but were lightened/contrast reduced by the camera - errr my "natural light" technique. Clown's hair is actually in shadow, though it's hard to tell from the photo. (The only thing harder than painting these things is photographing them!)
Clowns are an interesting subject to me because they provide an opportunity for stark contrasts. This clown is brightly clothed, but has a sad face. I've also done an "evil jester". Interesting - at least to me; but your mileage may vary, contents settle in shipping, etc. etc.
For the beard, I just scrubbed some Payne's Gray into the dry flesh areas. You can also mix your own blue-black, if you like.
Grisaille is basically an old masters technique of underpainting in a monotone (gray or burnt sienna being the two major colors used) to establish values in various areas. Penny Meyer has a video of her Lincoln figure showing this. (I think it's linked elsewhere on this site.) Once you have the underpainting, you use transparent layers over the underpaint that let you color what was once a monotone. Most of my painting is opaque, so the underpainting does not show thru, which is why I always blew off the idea. However, I find that setting the basic areas of value is helpful to me. At some point, I may try the transparent colors on top, but for now I'm just using it to get my values straight.
