the spilled stout

“Spilled Stout”

Back in December, I received an email from a man named Bob in St. Louis.  Through an internet search he had come across my paintings, and he was particularly taken by one of my violin paintings.   All of the lawyers at his law firm were looking for a surprise gift for the head of the law firm who is an Irish fiddler himself, and Bob was selecting the gift.  The thing was that all of the paintings were sold, and I had nothing similar to offer him.  And so, he immediately suggested a commission of a violin painting, along the lines of a favorite from the online gallery- a red violin on a blue chair.  I broke out my brushes and began to paint, delighting in the beautiful rhythms and flow of light, working long days to get it done and off in the mail.  By the end of December, the painting was mailed to St. Louis, and I’m told that his boss was thrilled.  It was a wonderful, enjoyable commission.

After a few weeks, I realized that there was a story in that painting.  And, though the painting felt like it was complete, it seemed to me like there was a whole other story to be told.  I stewed over it for a while, then I decided to go for it- a pendant painting, to match the other.  Kind of like a before and after.  I spent the past four months working on the second half of this painting, which I called “Spilled Stout.”  Today, I finished the painting, and framed it in my garage, and I am packing it up to send it to my show in California.  There is a story told with these paintings, and though I could write down that story, but then I’d be bastardizing the visual medium of the paintings.  I’d like for you to see them side by side, the St.Louis painting on the left and the new one on the right, and for you to see your own story.  Could I make a suggestion?  Pour yourself a stout (or wine if you are sofistercated like that), and click this link for Dezi Donnelly the fiddler.  While the music plays, look at the paintings, sip your stout, and wish to God that you were Irish.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DHCvUlAQ_E

“Perfect Pour” and “Spilled Guinness”, oil on linen, 18″ x 24″