Harvest Maiden

Here she is - the next maiden I spied in the background texture! Actually, I saw three women in this background. First, right I after I finished it, a woman with a hat more in the middle of the painting. That evening I suddenly saw a very beautiful, heavy-set woman with hat. I was all set to paint her, but when I went to sketch her the next morning, I couldn't see her at all - instead there was this lovely woman.

I don't know what made me think of grapes, but they brought back fond memories from my childhood. When I was younger, we lived in one of the most beautiful wine-producing regions in Germany, and every fall, when the grapes were harvested and pressed, I remember visiting vineyards with my parents and sister, many of the wine festivals, and dinners and celebrations with good friends. We children always got a pitcher filled with freshly-pressed grape juice. Those were some of the best years for my family!!

I painted Harvest Maiden with acrylics on 15 x 22 140lb watercolor paper. I hope you like her as much as I do!