Working "from without", as opposed to "from within"....

The painting I am working on now is unusual for me. Most of my work is manifested internally, and relies very little upon events that happen beyond my personal thoughts & relationships. That is one of the reasons why I fought myself when the idea for this painting presented itself to me. Eventually, the painting won out and is being made, but I now find myself in a predicament that I have never faced before. Paintings that deal with current events have a shelf life, and are doomed to become "history paintings" as the situation changes. While I mean this work to be much more than an illustration of this period in time, the meaning will change dramatically if the "cast" changes.

Being someone who watches very little TV, and subscribes to art magazines (well, MAYBE a fashion magazine or two...), I normally do not follow what goes on in the lives of celebrities, but the whole Brangelina thing was difficult to ignore, one of the many reasons I am doing the painting. So, because of my obliviousness to this kind of thing, I could have easily missed the most current bit of news: in the past few weeks, I have been to many websites looking for images for the painting, and could not help but notice that "Brad & Angie" are looking to adopt another baby from India soon. As a painter who averages 3-12 months per painting, this may prove to be the most absurd undertaking ever.... the painting could be outdated by the time it is unveiled. I have a problem to solve. Looks like my original idea of multiple putti heads from various countries wasn't so bad after all, but that will be too busy. I am already playing with the jpeg on my computer to change the composition so that another putti can be added.