Buds for Mister B.

Mister Black and Buds with Salsa Tablecloth
21.75 x 23.75"
oil on wood

Maybe you noticed the paintings are taking longer. They are bigger, too. And more complex. Each one challenges the next. I never liked competition. It makes me nervous and irritable. Well I knew it would come to this. I really did good with the one before this and POOF created something I am not sure I can top. So I was tortured this whole painting. No, not tortured like Harry. But more tortured than I am comfortable being. Haha, oxymoron... "comfortable being tortured." Actually I think Harry is only comfortable when he is tortured.

But back to moi. This painting did not come easily. I had to run my brains in top gear puzzling out all the shapes and colors. For some reason I really wanted to try to do a really strong bright red-orange tablecloth with orange-yellow "petals". Orange is probably my least favorite color. It was one of my mother's favorite colors. The whole time I was doing this painting I was thinking of her. So I have had this urge to put these colors together and see if they could work.

Then there are the roses, which I really love. My mother grew prize roses and yes, she actually won prizes for them. They were large lucious reds and pinks, unlike these small buddy things. But I like the smaller buddier roses.


The next problem was the light in the doorway. It was really bright and white and blue yet the tablecloth was bright and indoors and orange. They fought the whole time and I am not sure if anyone won. I think it may have come out better if I had the scene just as it was to paint from, but I had to put the pieces together. I had a window with that light coming in, but no door. I wanted a door because Mister Black is annoyed with the battle going on in my head and he wants to bolt out the door. He thought this was going to be about comfort and coziness and domestic harmony.

He was also disturbed at the painting of himself on the wall. He was frankly astonished that I would paint his rumpus so incorrectly large.

I am so uncomfortable with the feelings about this painting I almost painted over it, but I decided instead to put it up and see what I think in a few days. Or what YOU think.

If Harry were here he would ask me what I didn't like about it. Well I told you that already. Then what I do like about it. OK I like the small buddy roses or whatever they are. The black gloss in Mister B twice and again in the door handle. The French Ultramarine Blue in the planter repeated in the Mr. B painting. The creamy blue & white & yellow light swirling around the buds. The buds swirling around Mister B. The slight turn of Mister B's head looking subtly shocked at his own portrait.

Lori and I were emailing the other day and she asked me how I handle decorating in my own home with my paintings. The problem of liking a painting but the colors not going in your home. Personally I think your home is different than a museum in the same way your choice of reading before bedtime will be different than your English lit required reading list. There are just times you don't want to be depressed or overwhelmed with some dissonant shocking color. So maybe if you have a room in which you would like to stir up arguments, you could ...
go shopping @ Etsy and buy a different one because this one is...
SOLD