Valentine Nest
6x6in gouache on aquabord $110. SOLD
Artist Note.
I am still on the
valentine/love theme.
I love bird nests.
They are truly a passion of mine.
I collect them and
I marvel at them.
I paint them for my own pleasure
in all media and viewpoints.
Even so, this one is
a bit different for me.
An imaginary nest.
I tried to make the nest
look as if it was floating
over a diffused background.
The heart shape stands for love
The broken egg is symbolic
of a new life started
from that love.
The idea for a nest shaped
like a heart happened
when I saw this nest
I think the heart shaped
interior was created by the
compression of the branches.
Anyway - it spoke to me.
I started off with exploring
some ideas with
watercolor on Yupo
It is a fabulous surface
to work out ideas on
because it is so forgiving
and lends itself easily
to make changes.
My first sketch
I wondered what less color
would be like
so wiped away the background
and left a border
Next I thought I would try
for an abstract shapes
thinking tree bark
Still not speaking to me so I
wiped it all off leaving
the interior eggs,
Cleaning up even more
with paper towel
and took it down to a heart
with eggs.
From exploring through
these ideas I had a better sense
of how I wanted to
my nest to look.
The background not as bright
as the blue and not as
geometric as the bark one.
I realized I had never altered
the interior -
the broken egg shell was
important
so I went with keeping
it as the focal area.
Then I painted it on the
aquabord...not as forgiving!
