Thinking Big: Waltz of Impressions

So excited was I to obtain a five-foot wide, two-inch deep canvas at half price at the end of last year, I hurried it out of the art supply store without even realizing that it would not fit in the back of my Buick. I waited for a friend with a truck to meet me, help me take it home, and carry it up a flight of stairs. Over the next few months, I would dabble at the large canvas on my wall, then let it sit for weeks as I worked on other projects. Then, last week, upon accepting a new commission, I decided I should take the time to finish this large-scale painting properly before moving on with anything new.


Waltz of Impressions [above] began with the musing that the crepe myrtle branches and dappled shade outside my window reminded me of stained glass windows in a Gothic Cathedral. Said musing led me to imagine a sort of "Cathedral of Contemplation" in the woods, and pictured the lovely character from one of my figure drawings reposing there, listening to Chopin's waltzes, thinking about life and art, and watching the play of light. Naturally, I added the fountain that I see every day from my window in the background for good measure. Once again, I have managed to create a painting that I find rather difficult to photograph, but the detail snapshot below is a fairly faithful representation of the finished work. I have been gazing at this piece quite a bit-- I had become so accustomed to seeing an enormous blank canvas on the wall that I feel an odd sort of wonder whenever I walk into the room and find a charming painting there instead. . .