Orchid on green...

I have fun with these orchid paintings and playing with how the flowers look against different colored backgrounds. This one is posing in front of another painting so I could have a fun green to play the flowers off of. I also enjoyed painting the leaves of the spider plant in this one. It was a challenge figuring out how much to simplify that mass of information with all of those leaves.

In the previous poll question I asked which form of expression has been the most moving for you. With 102 votes the results were:

painting 66%
music 15%
writing 7%
photography 6%
dance 3%
theater 2%
sculpture 1%

My wife says I should not be surprised by these results, since this is a blog about painting. But I have to admit I am a little surprised. I love making paintings, and I do find them moving and exciting, but I also have had more intense reactions to other forms of art. For me, music is consistently the art form that stirs strong emotions. I do not have as deep of an understanding of it, and I am amateurish at making music, but I find a strong connection to it. I have occasionally seen a painting bring someone to tears, and I am always interested to see that. I think part of my vote here has to do with the way I look at art. I spend my whole life trying to analyze paintings and problem solve my own work. Maybe that makes it harder for me to have a truly emotional reaction to a painting/drawing? I don’t know. But it was fun to see the way people were voting. If anyone had a specific piece of art they were thinking of when answering this poll, I would be curious to hear what it was. Maybe you could mention it in the comments below so others can see too.

2 Responses to “Orchid on green”

1. Dan Corey says:

   April 27, 2012 at 12:35 pm

   Hey Colin, first off, lovely piece! The abstract is great.
   I agree on music being the most moving but probably because of the images it conjures in my mind.
2. brian cameron says:

   April 29, 2012 at 1:43 pm

   Actually your paintngs, on occasion, have moved me. Not to tears, but several have stirred something in me that says ‘Look! he has captured a feeling here with just paint and canvas”. I’d have to scroll through your blog to find the one I’m thinking of. It was a simple ordinary street with powerlines and stop signs and a sense of light that was simply amazing.
   I recently went to the Mark Rothko exhibit at the portland art museum. His monumental, color field pieces definitional have a moving effect on me.His pieces are famous for making folks cry.