Sunday, January 11, 2009

Flight

I may fiddle with this a little, but it's mostly finished. I've had much of the day to work on it. Daughter drove Dearest to church. Dearest had been asked to sing with the first sopranos, and had practiced today's anthem all week, so she was determined to get there. But she was just as determined to have me paint all morning. So they had their first drive together (I've been teaching Daughter to drive) out of our little town. Church is in the larger little city of Chapel Hill.

Since so much was done to ensure I could paint, I concentrated on it - not moving from in front of this painting for the three hours they were gone. I was a bit stiff when they got home...

This comes closer than I have before. I guess this idea will keep coming up. Click the image for a larger view.

>>>> Appendix de Grenouille <<<<

Some things cannot be returned to the bottle. When once I had sampled a mayfly I was forever ruined for midges. After the first kiss of a mademoiselle grenouille, I will forever want more.

Etienne says the ladies did him the same way, when he was five. And since then he is fascinated with the femmes, and he was looking for his Dearest. Though years passed, he was not able to forget the looking. And now that he has her he still feels he cannot ever have enough of her; the desire cannot be returned to the bottle. He would not wish it any other way.

And the painting is the same for him now - it is all the way out of the bottle. Inside the vessel is only a trace of the perfume of the arts - the rest is all in the air around his head, and in his nose and on his tongue. It goes with him everywhere, he is not ever rid of it. This feels well and it feels strange, like having the scent of wintergreen or balsam fir mixed into everything else. Wine with eucalyptus. Cinnamon toast with camphor. All the daily pleasures and daily scenes are overlaid with this incense of the fantastic.

What is out of the bottle for you? What surrounds you like a perfume and when was it released?

Au revoir,

Grenouille

9 comments:

Anonymous said...

"Flight" makes me think of shattered light....but in a way I've never thought of light before. And that's magic!

Genie Sea said...

Ah! The colors are magical! The movement more vivid! The cat's intensity and the bird's panic POP out of this piece. I love how some of the birds merge with the foliage, trying to camouflage themselves, but they can't fool the cunning, springing cat.

Lovely!

Out of the bottle came
me.
And in the bottle I
will never go.
Once fulfilling the wishes of others
Yet my own fulfillment,
I did never know.
Now that my wishes are mine alone,
Out of the bottle,
I find my home.

L'Adelaide said...

this painting is magical and there are so many birds, I had such fun finding them all and have a feeling I may have missed one or two! And I noticed the use of new colors, there is aqua I have not seen much if at all and the bird is three different colors and the grasses....and the cat...everything is switched up from your usual and I am so thrilled to see it...since I don't know for sure I am correct, I will go ahead and make the assumption it was your intention, based on your words...

for me, it is my art that is the perfume of my life, that surrounds me like a never-ending love story...that and the freedom I now have to do nothing (almost) but make love to it...it does indeed "color" everything my eyes lay themselves upon, everything I touch, taste, graze with my fingertips...it is everything for me....ah, not to grieve, little frog, love comes in many forms :)

Steve Emery said...

Tammu Vitale - Thanks! The light all over the place through the trees was part of the purpose of this painting.

Genie Sea - Thanks! And I'm not sure if the cat gets any of the birds, or not. I see this painting from the cat's perspective - I think I'm on its side more than the birds - that might be why they didn't get any details. They're just game.

I'm glad you are out of the bottle!

Linda - yes, I used thalo green, which I usually don't - it's a perfect color (seasoned with French Ultramarine) for shadowy forest tree trunks. I've been trying to get close to how this kind of thing (forest of tall trees, light splintered everywhere) feels to me - this is the closest I've come yet. I'll try again some time, when I've got more to work with; when I've learned more.

I had a feeling your art would be what was out of the bottle, and perfuming everything in your life. It's fairly obvious, judging from your blog - like mine.

lisahgolden said...

For me, writing is out of the bottle. Now if I can only channel it some......

And I love the painting. There's a lot of drama in those colors.

susan said...

It's coming along very well. Nice use of the time.

Steve Emery said...

Lisa - no surprise that writing is what's out of your bottle. I'm ready to hear about a novel or short story being sent out for possible publishing...

Susan - I'm not sure what I want to do next - or if there is much next. I like the colors and shapes for themselves, but some part of me wants to get in and model and blend more. But I think that might lose the scattered feeling of the light and perception. I'll have to ponder it. And I'd be interested in your thoughts on that.

Anonymous said...

Wow! This is magical, I wanna go live there. You make it seem so easy!

Steve Emery said...

Gypsy - Thanks! Not done yet, though. See later post.