Thursday, October 20, 2011

Guardians

This painting truly was a labor of love. I put many hours into it, first sketching, then erasing, then sketching some more, then painting and adding lots of detail.
For me this piece had a mexican feel to it from the start as the main figure was inspired by a photo I had seen of Lila Downs, a wonderful singer and song writer whose mother was from Oaxaca. We once were fortunate enough to see her perform in Albuquerque and it blew us away! But I digress...
When I was done with the main figure, I thought the background really needed something else.

Daniel reminded me of a monograph we have of Rodolfo Morales, a painter from Ocotlán de Morales in Oaxaca, a place we just adore and have visited often. I had forgotten how much I love Rodolfo's art! Looking at his work did the trick and I suddenly "saw" what the background wanted to be.
I don't know about you, but I like to think (in fact, I am quite sure) that we have guardians around us who love us no matter what, who walk with us on our path, and who occasionally nudge us in the right direction...
This painting is rather large for me, 18 x 24" (45 x 60 cm) and ready to hang with finished sides. The colors are even more beautiful than in the photos and the whole canvas has lots of great texture! 

Guardians
18 x 24" (45 x 60 cm) acrylic painting
on wrapped canvas

P.S. When I finished the painting, I was so much in Oaxaca in my mind and heart that I made our favorite Tortilla Soup recipe from a great Oaxacan cookbook "Seasons of my Heart." I actually found the recipe online for you (click here) - it's definitely worth making!!

13 comments:

  1. Very nicely done, Silke. This is a striking piece! I love the rich colors and the facial expressions, especially of the center figure. There is a lot of wisdom and depth to her, I think. And of course, I totally agree with you about guardians. ☺

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  2. This painting is amazing, Silke! I love how your abilities are developing. The hands of your center figure just blow me away - hands are so difficult to paint... kudos!!

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  3. Liebe Silke,

    kunstvoll.

    Sonnige Grüße
    Angela und Elisabeth

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  4. Liebe Silke,
    das ist wunderschön♥♥♥
    LG Sabine

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  5. Art and food, you really know how to feed people!
    This piece of art is fantastic. I love how you showed how it progressed, the figures on either side, the yellow flowers, perfect!
    So happy to find your blog.

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  6. Amazing colours, so mexican in feel! I love mexican art and I can almost hear the mexican music playing in the background as you cook your tortilla soup!
    Jess xx

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  7. Wonderful rich colors! The first time I painted on a big canvas, I thought it was intimidating, but by the time I was finished, I loved it!!

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  8. Silke, ein wunderschönes Bild. Und ohne diese Begleiter, die immer für uns da sind (no matter what) wären wir heute nicht da wo wir jetzt sind, Silke, my guardian! Danke für alles!!!!!
    Love Caro

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  9. A lovely piece, the mexican influence is wonderful.

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  10. This reminds me of the art by Freida Kahlo. Have you ever seen the movie "Freida" that was directed by Julie Taymor. I really liked that movie.
    Your art is amazing, so glad to find you!

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  11. Hallo Silke, super tolles Bild. Es ist unglaublich, wie du es immer schaffst neue Welten zu entdecken. Keep going on:-) Liebe Grüße Inge

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  12. Wow, Silke! This is such an ambitious painting! The colors are vibrant and rich. And I can definitely see the Mexican influence! Great job!

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