To Love

To Love is a surprisingly pretty, almost delicate, little abstract gem. With layers and layers of soft transparent color and a few crisp clear words accented by a bold symbolic heart. It is an easy painting to like. One that I hope will bring you comfort each time you see it. There are so many logical reasons why true and lasting love are impossible to find and maintain. You almost have to be nuts to believe in the possibility! Certainly it is a humble act of rebellion to witness all of the challenges and all of the reasons why love will not survive and then to go ahead and trust your heart and trust your hopes and commit to a long-term loving relationship anyway. In the face of those seemingly insurmountable forces that always seem ready to extinguish love.

We all need reminders to be brave and to trust and to follow through with our most loving intentions.

How To Love was created..... Once the black gesso primer dried, I used wide soft brushes to apply many many washes of transparent color. I used a dental tool to scrape the heart shape into the paint and scratch down to the black primer so that the lines appear black. I used a mid-sized bristle brush to apply three swatches of lighter colors. And then I used tiny detail brushes to add the words and to paint that gorgeous ripe heart. I painted the sides royal blue and the top of the "frame" dark green, then I used my fingers to rub a bright warm lighter green shade over the top and sides of the "frame".

To Love was painted on a small unfinished wooden "ornament" of sorts. It is a thin board with a very small wooden "frame" or 3-D border attached. There is a fine golden thread looped at the top - it appears as though the thread is somehow inserted into the wood at the top of the piece. (If you would prefer not to use the loop, I can easily remove it and paint over the spot where it was attached. Just let me know if you would like it removed.) The painting continues around the edges and it looks lovely displayed just as it is - either hanging from a small hook or sitting on a display stand.