The Road Not Taken

"The Road Not Taken" 2009
Oil on Canvas 36x48"

"Two road diverged in a yellow wood,

and sorry I could not travel both

And be one traveler, long I stood

And looked down one as far as I could

to where it bend in the undergrowth.

Then took the other, as just as fair,

And having perhaps the better claim,

Because it was grassy and wanted wear;

Though as for that the passing there

Had worn them really about the same.  

And both that morning equally lay

In leaves no step had trodden black.

Oh, I kept the first for another day!

Yet knowing how way leads on to way,

I doubted if I should ever come back.

I shall be telling this with a sigh

Somewhere ages and ages hence:

Two roads diverged in a wood, and I--

I took the one less traveled by, 

And that has made all the difference."

-Robert Frost

For some painting is an expression of beauty, it is to create something that is ascetically pleasing.  For others it is to create something that moves the viewer to emotion, to create an impact on the life of the viewer.  And yet for others it is personal expression, filled with symbolism that may be privy only to the artist himself, and a select few others.  For me, each painting lies to some degree on each of these axes, which may vary from painting to painting.  The above composition I chose to paint simply out of a desire to attempt a technique of painting where the palette knife is used in place of the brush.  (When viewing the piece, bear in mind this was my first attempt at the technique and many mistakes were made.)  For an artist such as myself, who is very detail oriented, it posses a challenge representing the subject matter in such crude terms, yet the technique presents sensational texture, which imparts to the painting a sense of relief sculpture.  The beautiful reds, greens, and golds found in fall foliage are complemented beautifully by such texture.  The technique, though crude, can be quite challenging.  One of the greatest advantages of oil painting lies in its forgiving nature, but paintings that are textured as this are difficult to rework (thus there are many elements in the above painting that I would change if reworking it was not nigh unto impossible).

In regards to meaning, the symbolism of the poem and the painting are one and the same.  It should be noted, though, that there are at least two accepted interpretations of this poem.  Frost himself warns against interpreting the poem simply.  The popular interpretation indicates that the viewer has taken the road 'less traveled by', and that their non-conformist path has 'made all the difference'. The ironic interpretation takes into account the statements indicating that the two roads 'equally lay', have been equally worn, yet it is in retrospect that the viewer will one day see the roads as being uniquely different.  The choice of one road over that of another could not have been made under pretense of choosing the non-conforming path, as both paths were equally worn, but it is through rationalization of the personal decisions that one makes that yields to the two paths visible differences whereby their choices may be attributed to, choices that have 'made all the difference'.  

Kiss of Spring

"Kiss of Spring" 2008
Oil on Canvas 16x20"

Painting from life has the advantage that elements of colour and lighting are given to you, yet the complexity of life presents a challenge.  The artist must mediate between representing the finest details of the subject, and simplifying those elements of the subject that would detract from the composition.  This theme is well represented not only in this composition, but also in the symbolic meaning that the painting holds.  The two spring flowers painted here represent the male and female figure just before kissing.  The daffodil, the male, is leaning in to the tulip, the female, with his 'hand' extending behind her 'head', and her 'hand' upon his 'chest'.  The flowers themselves, being spring flowers, symbolize a time when new life and love are bursting forth from the long winters of life, yet, I chose to leave the flowers in black and white symbolizing their simplicity and insignificance in such a vast world.  But, it is just this, their simple beauty, that overflows from their own sphere and into the world encompassing them, yielding to the world a vibrancy and life much greater than their own.  It may be noted that the colour behind the daffodil is that of the tulip, and that the colour behind the tulip is that of the daffodil, and the space lying between, where their lips will meet, is a beautiful fusion of their own colours.  This gives representation of the two lovers giving themselves to the other and becoming one through their love.

Below you will find the original picture that I took of these two 'young lovers', and thought the representations of the artistic photography is different from the symbolism found in the painting, it yet may be noted how emphasizing particular details, while simplifying others, can bring meaning to a composition that is otherwise nothing more than ascetically pleasing.  

Flowers of Eden

"Flowers of Eden" 2008
Oil on Canvas 16x20"

Painting abstracts can be quite relaxing.  I typically start out with a general idea of what I want to paint, yet my planning of the composition is minimal.  When I approach this style, I like to use the colours strait from the tube, in their pure form, without adding medium, or mixing of the paints on the palette.  The bright vibrancy that result from unmixed hues complements the free flowing nature of abstract art, and it enhances the enjoyment of the process.  After giving my first abstract away, I had a strong desire to try the style again.  I chose some of my favorite colours from my palette, squeezed them directly on to the canvas in such a way that I thought would prove to mix well as the paint blended, and I began painting without much further thought of how the painting was to evolve.  In looking at the finished product, I thought that the swirls looked like flowers from another world, thus I titled the painting "Flowers of Eden" signifying that these flowers were coming from a long lost world that has long been absent of man's corrosive touch.  As time has progressed, and my knowledge of science with it, the title that I have chosen for this pieces has ever become more fitting.  As I have learned about the origins of life, from the perspective of evolutionary biology, I have come to understand that life evolved initially in the oceans before it progressed to land, and as Eden is the biblical origin of life, it was fitting that these flowers, which have the appearance of sea anemones, represent the flowers of an underwater Eden as life came into being.  

Untitled 2007

"Untitled" 2007
Oil on Canvas 14x18" 

Oil painting is more than transposing paint to the canvas, it is more than creating an ascetically pleasing
picture.  The process, for some, is where the meaning lies, more so than can be derived in the collection of brush strokes upon the canvas.  This painting was painted at a time when my dad was undergoing treatment for Lymphoma.  Before he returned home, I brought my paints and brushes to the hotel and dad and I painted together.  Dad didn't really want to 'waste' a canvas, so he sat on one side of the table, and I the other, and separately we painting our own picture together on the same canvas.  For me I was undertaking a monochromatic attempt to portray an ocean scene, using only shades and tints of cobalt blue, dad was undertaking a mountain scene.  But this painting session was more than creating a monochromatic study, or capturing the majesty of the mountain, it was about creating a bond between father and son.  It isn't a great painting, and will not likely survive through the years, but the meaning herein is found in the process, and the bond created therein cannot be ravaged by the rags of time.

Mystic Dragon

"Mystic Dragon" 2007
Oil on Hardboard 19.5x27.5"

Oil Painting is a rather expensive hobby to get into.  Thought it is possible to start with a minimal number of paints and brushes, and build up over time, I rather turned to eBay to get a head start.  As a result I bought a lot of 100 tubes of paint.  (There were about three tubes of each colour.  I sold many of them back, in smaller auctions, and in the end I ended up spending about $3 a tube for high quality paints, which is significantly less than they retail for.  Now days I buy most of my art supplies from www.dickblick.com.)  This painting was born out of my curiosity to see what colour each tube of paint looked like on the canvas.  Additionally, I was painting with a friend on that day and I am yet very self conscious of people watching me while I paint, thus I didn't try to attempt anything that required any degree of skill.  I began the painting by squeezing a little paint out of each tube directly on the panel, and then I proceeded to move the paint around with my brush.  The painting was given to my friend, Valerie Robins, whom I was painting with that day, and also whom has also given me much advice as I was beginning my artistic endeavors.  The abstract is titled after a small portion of the painting in the upper left hand corner, where the red brush strokes come into the yellow.  To me it looked almost like a dragon head.

Nkosi's Warrior

"Nkosi's Warrior" 2007
Oil on Canvas Board 12x16"

My First Painting:  

I began with nothing in mind, or any forethought on what to paint, but rather I simply had a desire to paint.  This desire had been swept under the rug in place of more important life endeavors.  Yet, it long remained a dormant yearning, whispering to my soul, pleading to be given freedom to express itself.  The day came that I decided that the time had come to free the artist within.  I bought an instructional book and began to study, to teach myself the craft.  Shortly thereafter I bought a few tubes of colour, brushes, and canvas.  (My beginning palette consisted of Ivory Black, Titanium White, Yellow Ochre, Cadmium Red, and Cobalt Blue.)  I put on some Jazzy Nora Jones, and I painted.  I experimented with mixing colours and medium.  I experimented with brush strokes, getting a feel for how the brush felt in my hand and how it responded to the paint.  (It may be interesting to note for those who are not aquatinted with the intimate details of oil painting that not all colours of paint respond in the same way.  For example, alizarin crimson, my favorite tube colour, has the consistency of butter, where as lemon yellow has the consistency of honey.  Over time an artist will develop an understanding of the character of each colour on his palette, yet despite this understanding there are infinite combinations of how an artist my choose to mix the paints on his palette, thus mixing paints becomes an art to itself.)  "Nkosi's Warrior" evolved into what it is through my curiosity and learning.  The title itself derives from the painted warrior.  Nkosi is the isiZulu word for king, and as this is my surname and a name that I was often called when I was amongst the Zulus, the title becomes a symbol for the King's warrior, or in other words, my warrior.  If you would like to take the symbolism further, the spear can be viewed as a brush and the shield a palette, the canvas the battle field.  Early on I had considered including this warrior as part of my artistic signature to every piece of art, and although I decided against it at the time, I wonder at times if I should have chosen the other way.