Storm Over Poppy Field: A Drama

Have been taking lots of Cloudscape photos over the previous year and had a chance to play into some of that Insight and Inspiration with this work after Jonathan Stephenson's Paint with the Impressionists (1995) instructional Number 2: Poppies on a Mound (after Monet).

 Souvenir Art: Storm Over Poppy Field - Copyright James E. Martin 2011

As part of my Creative Pursuit, the most fun for me in this piece was the depth of contrast in the clouds and the play of light in the poppy field. The look and feel is quite different than the example provided in Stephenson's book which appeared to have much more open daylight. I also think that my image was influenced by my years spent in the Maine Woods and I was feeling that when I put brush to canvas. Part of the Artistic Endeavor is to observe, follow, accept mentoring and coaching, and be influenced by other sources. I wrestle a bit with the mentoring and coaching inherent in a personal relationship or through an art book only because part of my Artistic Endeavor right now is about Freedom. I can be excited by the work that other Artists are exhibiting but I can feel the constraints embedded in following another while developing an Artifact in this manner. Searching for Self. Moving forward.