“Party Dress”

The “star” of this painting isn’t my dress. It’s the potted plant: Echeveria “Party Dress”. A rare type of succulent. I found it in my home-away-from-home, Pine Hill Nursery. As soon as I saw it, I knew I needed to paint it. It’s a long, tall, skinny plant so I had to use a long, tall, skinny canvas. As usual, I wasn’t sure about the composition. What can I do with this thing? I had no idea. Some artists do very detailed, finished drawings before they even pick up a brush. But I’m not one of them. I’m impatient! Maybe I’m more like a novelist. Many novelists start writing without a clue of what will happen to their characters. Things just evolve. Life is a surprise.

And I was rather surprised by the end: it had stretched into a very long perspective, starting right about at knee level, finally zooming way out to a few twinkling stars in the twilight.

Classical artists will probably scream THE DRESS OVERWHELMS THE PLANT!!! Let them. I wanted it that way to remind people that sometimes the most extraordinary things are right in front of them. If people will only slow down and look….

That outfit I’m wearing is actually just a blouse. Poof! It morphed into a dress. Magic! Life should be so easy.

The geraniums are real. Some are over 20 years old. The Japanese lanterns are on loan from a friend at Tamarack Gallery. The black & white cat is my dear Picasso; the Siamese is sweet little Bernie Sanders, mouser extraordinaire. They love hanging out in the studio, constantly begging for treats.

Now…… out to repot Party Dress….