This painting has a rich creamy texture. The swirls of the blossom are like little candy wheels. Blossom Tree reflects the spontaneous freedom achieved when painting en plein air(painting outdoors) the qualifies of which are thick opaque paint (adding white to wet paint) and swirls of pure colour mixed on the canvas to create a subtle muted effect. Often the truth of a painting reveals itself well after it is finished.
When I first did this painting I was not sure how I felt about it. But over time I have come to understand its hidden truth. Just as the blossom tree is a constant surprise with ever changing messages I have come to appreciate this painting’s revelations. As with all worthwhile paintings there is a tireless and continual unfolding of its messages.
The blossom tree at the bottom of my garden
Plays a song all year long,
Mesmerizing to the eye and hand of the painter,
Bare crooked branches in winter Twist and turn to the light,
Announcing the burgeoning onset of noisy growing pains.
Then spring burst forth with breathtaking joy,
Pink, white and cyclamen blossom flowers,
Vie for attention, jostling each other,
In a circular polka upward and around, forward and back
Ruffling their petticoats, and twirling the perfect petals earthward.
Then as if in a dream the floral dance gives way to a tapestry of white pink and cyclamen laid over the green lawn like a blanket for a lover’s picnic.
It is not all over, look very closely, the branches hint a green spread of leafy shoots, and the fruit we will harvest in summersets.