The Whole Picture, and a bonus!

My last post gave you your virtual invitation to the exhibit. However, part of the painting was hidden by the curve of the template I used. So here it is in it's entirety.

Remembrance 36x36 oil on canvas

I did this painting from a photo I took at Long Hill Sedgewick gardens, where I did "Meditation - First Lotus" which you saw earlier. This piece is the largest I have made so far. It is 3 ft. square! I do love it. I worked hard to try to get a spot where I would not see the chair, but I would see its reflection in the water. This was the perfect image for that. Like our memories, the image of the chair is there, but it is altered, by our perceptions, experiences, and by time. I find my memories of Mom are changed already. I am finding that qualities of my Mom that were in the background are coming to the foreground as I appreciate them more.

The bonus: After I did the above piece I did a second one. It is smaller, but it is also a reflection piece. It is called, (simply enough) "Reflection". I thought it would be easy after doing the big one. No way, it was harder that the big one, and I am not sure why. Life is like that sometimes. 

Reflection 18x24 oil on canvas

A Beautiful Garden

I have painted many times at the beautiful Sedgwick Gardens at Long Hill in Beverly, MA. It is the headquarters of the Trustees of Reservations, a wonderful group dedicated to the preservation and stewardship of our state's lands. Here's their website:

http://www.thetrustees.org/places-to-visit/northeast-ma/long-hill.html

I decided that I would take the pink chair there and set up next to a beautiful water feature with lilies and lotuses. As I set up, I was told that I was lucky - that the lotus had just opened for the first time. It was just gorgeous in it's delicacy and I was taken by the sense of being in the presence of an ancient and exotic flower. I knew Mom would love it, so I set her chair up close to it so that she could get a good look.

 

I painted for several hours, always receding further away so I could have the benefit of the shade. I do like shade when I paint! I managed to stay in the same relationship to the chair so I could paint the same view. The painting came out a very rich green, and becaue of the oriental flower, I deceided that it looked like Mom was meditating quietly behind the blooms. I like the way the leaves come in and out of focus and the way they arch over the chair like they are protecting it.

Meditation (First Lotus)

There will be more to the story of this little pond and flowers. While I was there, I took a lot of photos from every angle, including my goal: to get some with the chair reflecting in the water. I am now working on the third one in this mini-series, so stay tuned!