Recently, my friend Dianna asked me what she could do to dress up the front of her house, so I suggested she go down to the University of Virginia Medical Center and see a round tree painting that I had on display. She loved it and thought something of that nature would be a good motif. I told her I had a tree in mind and said where she could find it. She agreed that this tree would be very good and would love to see it on her house.
Trees are beautiful beings. I am often awestruck in their presence. I had been looking at this specific tree for a couple of years, so I was pleased that I should receive a commission to paint it. I noticed while sketching this tree that it’s branches twisted from one direction to the next. It had a beautiful shape and was a good model. I thanked the tree for it’s service to me.
As this tree had it’s unique shape and design, so do we all. Every leaf, twig, stem, ear, arm, hand on the planet is different. We can paint an iconic pair of eyes, but I prefer to paint a specific pair of eyes. I like to show the individual features, the uniqueness and diversity of the beings I portray. By doing so, the viewer recognizes it as truthful.