There is a lot going on in this little painting. There are so many decisions to make along the way..sometimes it is overwhelming. These are some of the things I was thinking about: composition, creating a variety of brushwork that included soft edges and harder edges, painting convincing soft shadows, getting the light right, creating a sense of depth, and not least, painting a convincing scene of two girls with their fishing nets on a dock, with some sense of movement. This pond is a favorite subject of mine because it is right behind my house and my grandkids love to play there.
This painting was inspired by a photo taken by Carol Ricker who is a pianist and teacher. These little girls were playing a duet. The original photo was a close-up of their backs and I loved the subject matter, so I added the missing details of the piano with flowers and their stool and legs. This is why I say that I use photo references as inspiration or a jumping off place. It is a bit like a movie about some specialist and only experts in that particular field would be able to tell the fictional parts of the character. Sometimes it is more convincing than at other times. For instance, I question the validity of Matt Damon's character in the Martian when he duct taped his suit and tent together on Mars to keep the integrity of air pressure. Duct tape is amazing stuff...but...really?
My granddaughters were sitting on the floor with the sun glowing on them and I just couldn't resist taking a photo for the purpose of painting it. I like how clean and spontaneous it looks and want my work to progress in this direction. So much to learn....
I have been fascinated lately by little ballerinas. I think I must be missing my granddaughters. They are both willing dancers and my son loves to put on music and dance with them. The youngest is a climber (danger baby) and her older sister is very lady like, with a touch of wildness. They epitomize the expression of 'Dance is the hidden language of the soul," which I believe is a quote by Martha Graham.
I was watching these little girls at the park. The one face us had a popular type of doll and she was totally in to it. Her friend, who had the same doll with different colored hair, treated hers like an inconvenient accoutrement. So even though I called this painting "Little Mothers" it might be more appropriate to cal it 'little mother and her single friend!'
This does bring back memories of sunbathing with my girlfriends (we used baby oil and iodine back then) and the boys in the distance. The pattern of their legs with fun shadows really caught my attention and I snapped a quick shot of this that was really terrible. There were a lot more people in it and only part of their legs, but it was enough to create a painting I am happy with.
This makes me think about the song "The Bear Goes Over the Mountain." The excitement of going up, up, up, but not knowing what is on the other side. I think there is magic being in a cathedral of trees with little girls. These figures are itty bitty. I have been doing a few paintings lately that have miniscule people in them. I am not sure why I have chosen these subjects, but I am sure that if I do enough, I will figure out how to do them without sweating!
My good friend from high school, Karen Thomas, graciously gave me permission to paint from a photo of her grandkids. I lived down the street from Karen for a few years when we were younger and we remained friends throughout high school. Karen has one of those lovely stories about marrying her high school sweetheart and they have raised a lovely family together. I titled this "First Time" because it is the first time I have ever drawn or painted a deer and of course because it tells the story for the kids getting to feed the deer. The photo captured that magic moment and I hope my painting brings it to life.
The inspiration for this was and old vinyl album cover I saw. I have great memories of listening to records with my sister on an old player like this. My mom didn't learn how to read until she was an adult because she was severely dyslectic. When her mother died, she had to stay home and help raise her brothers and sisters. She kept this a secret for most for her life which just goes to show how brilliant she really was, as none of us knew and she was a bookkeeper in the Navy. Anyway, she gave us many story and music albums when we were little because she didn't read out loud to us. One of my favorites was Peter and the Wolf, which also was a method for teaching different instruments in the orchestra. Mom eventually became an obsessive reader. I have great admiration for her all the things she overcame to become an artist and fabulous person.
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