"A rose by any other name would smell as sweet..." (or would it?)
I believe that we as artists, are never "complete" in our craft....always growing and changing. There is so much to be learned. When I first started painting, I was very timid with my work. (I look back at a photo of one of my first roses, and now all I can do is laugh. One day I might get the courage to post it, so we can all pee our pants together). I find that now, I am painting more experimentally, in the fashion of realism (Well, I'm trying. I'm not there yet!! Haha..) This gives each flower greater dimension and depth, in fact it breathes life into the flower. It becomes more real rather than just a painting.
I look at a rose in a different way than I did ten years ago. I used to simply see just a rose. But now, I see the rose, I see its petals, the many shades in one petal, its curvature, the beauty of how it sits there, how it falls into place, and how happy it makes me to look at it (and then of course to paint it). That's the feeling I experience when I surround myself with paintings from my fellow artists. It makes me genuinely happy. I want to convey this in all of my pieces.
As I sit here looking at this rose photograph I have just posted (above), I can even feel the silky satin petals just by looking at it now. I am amazed at how perceptions change over time. Oh, who knows...maybe it's just old age creeping up on me. ha ha ha!
-xoxo
Mary
