What draws us in. . .and the unknown. . .

Some things in life have a powerful attraction.  Art  making has a profound vibration in my life. . .it dominates and calls to me like nothing else, other than my family, naturally.  And speaking of such, (family) the figure under the umbrella is my daughter and this image is something I'd like to interpret on canvas one day.  

I choose to say she has been a most understanding, supportive  child. . .now wonderful woman, while her mother has had her head in paint clouds for many years.  As with most artists, there are those events, pictures, moments, land, sky, beloved objects, loved ones, memories and yes, even strangers who inspire and turn on the the creative light bulb.  This photo of my child in NYC is a moment I'd like to paint, hoping to catch her expression and the feeling of being one amongst so very many.  And yet, looking closely, she seems larger than life standing there, not small and diminished by all that surrounds her. . .much like how I've always thought of her very essence. . .her particular resonance.  Now then, how to express that on canvas?  Obviously there's a whole symphony hidden beneath the stage here.  Therein likes the challenge.    

I study people now in a way that I never did before portraiture. . .and I marvel at the individual uniqueness we are all stamped with.  How can it be that we are so different but oh so alike?  As I gain in years, I literally not only see and hear, but feel the single thread pulsating through us all.  What draws some people in to see only the differences?  I suggest portrait/life classes for all. . .beginning in childhood. . .but most particularly for the grown-ups on this spinning planet. 

And here's something simple about the unknown. . .you may know it:

Twinkle, twinkle, little star,

How I wonder what you are,

Up above the world so high,

Like a diamond in the sky.

As your bright and tiny spark

Lights the traveler in the dark,

Though I know not what you are,

Twinkle, twinkle, little star.

- Jane Taylor