I Love Surrealism...So Why Don't I Pursue It?

You see a painting...it interests you and maybe you even buy it, but do you know what went into it? I don't mean the usual questions buyers sometimes ask sellers like "how long did it take you to paint that?" I know, its almost as funny as "I can't even draw a straight line" or "is that that paint by numbers stuff?" No, serious painting is something I seldom get to do and then chances are it will sit in storage for many years before the right collector comes along. This painting...done in the mid-2000's just found the right buyer:

Pretty simple...paint a horse, an ocean, etc. What's the big deal? The big deal is it takes thought...believe it or not and also time.  Sometimes a LOT of time! An Artist will sometimes walk around for weeks or months with a thought in his/her head and it will grow and grow, then some sketching or doodling...finally transmitting it to canvas.

This painting "Toward the Light" took over a year from first thought to completion, then sat in storage for years until I finally decided to make a serious move toward promoting and selling it. I wanted to represent life...from birth to death and that is what this painting represents. The black and white tiles representing the ups and downs, good and bad of a person's life. The moth (which I prefer to paint more like a butterfly) is called a Painted Lady and represents myself in the scene.

An artist can sit down and paint something from the heart....or a vase full of roses.  Mostly, we paint the roses...they look good and sell well.  Neither is right or wrong, but It takes a special person to appreciate the heart that goes into the work of a painting like "Toward the Light".