Round

I couldn't go to Big Sur and not come back with an inspiration to depict ocean crashing into rocks topped with sprawling cypress trees. 

In many ways, I am not pleased with how this piece turned out. I feel that it doesn't do justice to the experience of Big Sur. Perhaps I didn't choose the right scene to depict. This is entirely from the mind's eye, but inspired by Point Lobos. I take that back - the poppy is reproduced from a photo I took last year. Beyond the choice of scenery, I feel that it is lacking. I didn't feel this way until I put it on the wall and committed to its state of completion. I like that I added the hand holding the California poppy as an element of the foreground, but it doesn't fully satisfy me. I may have been a mistake to decide on the medium and technique before the image to create. I had the idea that colored pencil outline would look nice, but not I see that its effect leaves you wanting more. And there are no depicted features to the sky, but it was a cloudy, rainy day which was just incredible in reality. Someone else may enjoy the simplicity, but this will be something I work on in future weeks. 

Still, there are aspects of this work that I like, and will keep in mind as I go forward. I like the color of the poppy in contrast to the rest. I like the spatial orientation of the horizon and the hand, and even the crashing wave and cypress. Adding the hand and poppy as a new layer is a new practice to me, but was likely inspired by others' work (such as Lucy). And I'll admit that a goal I had in mind to make something that Rebecca would respond to, because this piece gets into her area of expertise and passion. Anyway, I'll figure out where to go from here...

October 18, 2016