New Work: Color in Concert, oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches

Oil on canvas, 48 x 48 inches

In the studio

On any given day, my studio is alive with canvases in various stages of creation. This particular piece had a long residency that began fourteen months ago and evolving through many changes, yet never quite finding its resolution.

Over time, I explored several color directions: vivid reds with yellows, then a turn toward lavender and gold, where it remained for months awaiting the next spark.

That breakthrough arrived unexpectedly while I was teaching an art class. Using the painting as an example of a composition with promise but no clear path forward, I found that sharing the problem was a motivating force, so I decided to push the colors and shadows at the bottom of the piece. The result was a more dynamic interplay of light and color, just what was needed to move the oil forward again. 

The layered composition, contrasts, and abundance of color began to move in harmony—ultimately resolving into what I now think of as an orchestral expression: Color in Concert.