Sunday 25 May 2008

Bargain Roses from Hoogvliet no 5


It is one of my great regrets that I have no intellectual grasp of composition. A person who knows about composition, looking at this rose painting, would no doubt tell me why the space is divided up in the wrong way, why the vase is sitting in the wrong position, the roses are arranged in an unbalanced manner etc etc. If I had known all that I could have got to it first and prevented the disaster you see here. (Bargain Roses from Hoovliet No 5, oil on canvas 40 x 40 cms May 2008)
IF it is a disaster... Because I don't know. I just felt it like this and then when my friend came and said "why don't you run the lower background continuously" I did so because I was about to anyway and he confirmed my hunch. Underneath the vase there is just a little more of that band of mars red, and so there should be. I think my camera was drunk so I will retake and repost the photo. Ignorance is bliss - all I know is that this flower painting is in inverted commas. It is saying: "I cannot believe this is me painting roses", and "see how every brushstroke is about a race against death to paint love".
a bientot
Jane

3 comments:

alberto valentini said...

"a race against death to paint love"... could be the title of a book, maybe your story?
Find composition intriging, can't figure out the background, creates some uneaseiness, colors are great.

Jane Walker said...

Thank you - its only half my story - death means the roses - it is a race to paint them before they die, I mean, but a lot of my work is about love, sometimes literally. Both the roses and the love can die but the roses have to be painted NOW.

Anonymous said...

There is a general rule of dividing your surface up into thirds and there are hot spots in those cross sections which is where your focal point should be. I don't see a problem with the light left hand area in the back ground, it adds interest. Your focal point is sitting in one area of the thirds and the roses are definitely a focal point and in that cross section. I think it's beautiful ! I love your colors. As far as balancing color goes, I think the extra light you added is just the right touch to balance with all the color. :) I really love your colors here. So vintage feel.