Convictions

Harry Potter 7 pt. 2 was finally released to Red Box this week. Admittedly, I've never liked the movies for how much they are lacking from the books, or for the elements that change between the pages of the novel and the projection on the big screen, yet there was a line in the movie today that I don't believe was penned in the book, but I quite liked it. Remus Lupin in the final battle says, "It is the quality of ones convictions that determines success, not the number of followers."

Detour

On my travels home today I took a detour to a rural community housing one of the State's prisons. It almost seems odd that they would build a prison in the middle of nowhere, but I guess no one wants a prison in their back yard. Yet the distance does make it difficult for those who are housed far away from loved ones. Visits are rare and the inmates find themselves starved for the sight and sound of family.

His grin was only as his could be, uniquely his with indescribable elements that are difficult not to return. It was wide at the sight of his brothers. We have never been close, yet we are family, and blood means something. Despite having many moments where neither knew quite what to talk about, the two hour limit passed quickly. At the guard's call for the visit's end, suddenly there is so much more to be said that hasn't been spoken. Yet it isn't words that he longs to convey, but emotion, and it is emotion that he longs to hold onto as bars and then space slip between him and the love of family. He doesn't realize it, but I understand exactly how he feels, despite the differences in our own personal prisons. I should be better than I am at writing, but I let months and months pass between letters. Would I fare as well as he has if I were in his shoes? I  think not. I'm contemplating visiting on Christmas day, which is also his birthday. Previous to today I was thinking of spending the day with the children at the hospital. Last Christmas was one of the most depressing days of my life (such thoughts that day...) that I thought I might find a way to distract myself this year. Turns out that Christmas lies on a Sunday, my official volunteer day, but now I question who is in more need. The unfortunate children who are spending their Christmas at the hospital, or my brother who will be wroth with depression for the absence of a wife who does not love him and the children he never sees? It isn't a day to spend for my pleasure, but maybe I can ease the pain of another.

Colours of Spring

"Colours of Spring" gives representation of the vibrancy and life of Spring, as the world comes out of the long and dreary of Winter. Accordingly, you will find this piece to liven up the room with the bright and richly textured flowers popping out from the surface of the painting. I chose the dimensions of the painting with the idea that it would best be showcased above the archway leading into a room, inviting guest to feel enlivened by what lies beyond. It began as simple painting that I intended on completing in a single session working wet-in-wet, or alla prima. I wanted a bright painting with spontaneous brush strokes. I painted a rainbow of colours, from deep alizarin crimson to the jewel like French ultramarine. After combining primaries to make secondaries I placed dabs of titanium white paint directly from the tube on to the canvas. I then proceeded to spread the white paint into spring flowers, creating a tint of the colour below. The idea was that the background colour represented fields of flowers that blended together on the horizon creating a single mass of colour, while the flowers in the foreground were close enough to distinguish.

Original composition.  

The unfortunate nature of oil paint is that it leaves your painting vulnerable to the environment for an extended period of time while the paint dries. As a result of my negligence to protect the painting during this critical time a thick layer of dust was cemented into the wet paint from the air conditioning vent above. I was rather dissatisfied with the results so I sanded the painting and began afresh. Yet, I could not simply repaint it as I had before because I had used thick paint, resulting in obvious brush marks that would not match between the old and new. To solve this problem I decided to magnify the textural difference between the flowers and the background by using a palate knife to paint over the flowers. To create variety in the flower's colouration I painted the flowers in two steps. I first painted a dark colour creating the flower's outline, and then I painted a lighter colour above, allowing the two to mix as I spread the paint with the palate knife.

Flowers layers.

At this point my simple flower painting had become much more complex, and what was suppose to have  been completed in a single painting session was taking multiple painting session, with over 100 hours invested into the final piece. 

Spring flowers: Poppies, daises, daffodils, grape vine, pansies, crocus.

As the painting progressed over months I began to develop new ideas to incorporate into the piece. The painting represented the vibrancy and life of Spring, yet how could I represent the life of Spring without including the diversity of life that the world contains. Thus I chose to accent each panel with a complementary colour of life. In the end, I arrived at a much more dynamic painting.

"Colours of Spring" 2011
Oil on Canvas 12x48"

Close up of poppies and daisies. 

Close up of praying mantis. 

Close up of dragonfly.

Close up of daffodil and grape vine.

Close up of butterfly.

Close up of lady bug.

Close up of pansies and crocus.

Close up of butter fly.

Close up of bumble bee. 

(Did you notice the ants crawling around the painting?)

Oil Colours:
Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Red Medium, Cadmium Orange, Cadmium Lemon, Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Yellow Pale, Indian Yellow, Sap Green, French Ultramarine Blue, Prussian Blue, Dioxazine (Windsor Violet), Burn Sienna, Burnt Umber, Ivory Black, Titanium White, Iridescent White.

Colours

The way our lives are illuminated can drastically change the colours through which we see. In the shadows of dreary winter life is far more cold and blue than the bright warmth of a summer morning. The same life under a different light and season is not truly the same life at all. Our intellect has the ability to imagine what it will, rather than what is. As we consume with all of our senses the euphoric nectar and splendor of the lilly we cannot but help to visualize the purity of the Madonna in its white petals, yet those petals in a different light are not white but a dingy grey. Colour is a property of light, and as such the colours of the world are constantly changing with the changing of the seasons and the passing of the day. What we truly see, therefore, may not be what is perceived, rather it is relative to the illumination by which it receives. The colours that I see are not the same colours that you behold, for I see them through a different light and life than can be illuminated through your eyes. My colours are unique, as are yours, but they are ever changing...

Roasted Butternut Squash and Yam Soup

Roasted Butternut Squash and Yam Soup.

Oh how I love the Fall. The leaves turn from green to gold, the air becomes crisp, and the fruits of the harvest laden the table with the prosperity of the season. No other soup speaks of Fall as does butternut squash soup.

Here we have oven roasted butternut squash, sweet potatoes, and garlic tossed lightly in olive oil and sprinkled with thyme, nutmeg, cinnamon, and salt (I use equal parts squash to sweet potatoes). The roast is then pureed with vegetable stock, and brought to a simmer with a touch of sherry and heavy cream. The soup is garnished with sweet potato chips, fresh thyme, and nutmeg, yielding a rich and creamy golden soup reminiscent of all that Fall contains.

VIPs

Today was somewhat of an important day, but not for me. My boss, whom I have worked with for the past eight years, whom has become a good friend, is in a position to receive an advancement in the company. As part of the interview process her boss along with other VIPs, including the president and vice president of a multi-billion dollar company,  made a visit to the restaurant today. A month ago I was asked if I would be willing to take care of them during their visit, with the admonishment that her job and future would be in my hands. Surprisingly I wasn't terribly nervous for today's events (I have enough stress these days in concerning myself with my own interviews and future). The adrenaline did finally kick in at the onset of my presentation, but quickly wore off as I began my work. My job was to make her look good, and how did I do? Well, the answer to that question I don't entirely know, but I was told by multiple people that the president stated that my presentation was the best he has ever heard, and I do not doubt the service was likewise.

Black Box

The days are beginning to cool. Although it is still hot the sign that fall is on the way is immiscible. Soon the leaves will begin to change from green to gold, the nights will become crisp, and frost will kiss the last remnants of the harvest. And then winter will come. I stand at the threshold of a new season of life, yet the life before me is a black box, without definition or form. As a child growing up, I knew what I was to become, who I was to be. My life had a direction, and I lived without doubt or fear of what my life might hold. Now, as a man, I live in a world of unknowns. The daunting darkness before me holds more questions than answers. As I travel from place to place, trying to find my future, I imagine how the scene will turn the course of my life. So many dreams I have lost, so many I morn. I fight this last fight, hoping that I might, for once, be victorious. Yet if granted this one dream, I would gladly trade it and all of the other dreams I have ever dreamed for the one dream that I cannot have...