Whale

What a nice whale. I think he looks amused. Like he is full of private jokes. Certainly he looks calm and peaceful. Whales have this weightless, serene way of gliding through the sea that always strike me as otherworldly. Invitingly graceful. Makes me wish I could go swim with them. This piece is filled with bright, bold color and rich organic textures. It began as an abstract expressionist knife painting, but eventually the soft layers of blues and greens and purples began to feel like ocean to me and then this whale came along with his little fish friends. I added a single phrase painted in small letters in the lower right that reads, "Slow down."

I am hopeful that this calm cool fellow and his colorful friends will bring a few smiles and a bit of underwater quiet to your home or office.

How Whale was created..... This piece began with black gesso primer and then I applied every sort of blue and green and purple shade with a palette knife. I pushed and pulled and scraped the paint to create a timeless, warn, expressionist piece with active textures and surprising bits of color. After many layers were applied in this manner, I broke out my tiny detail brushes and created the aquatic stars of this unique scene. Before I ship it, I will coat Whale in glossy varnish to give it a bit of shine and to deepen the colors - making it feel even more like water.

(The image continues around the sides allowing you to display your new painting unframed. This is a digital photo. The scans above are more accurate.)

This piece was painted on a "deep-dish", gallery wrapped canvas and the image/textures continue around the staple-free sides allowing for a clean professional presentation when displayed unframed. Or it could also be easily and affordably framed as it requires no glass or matting. (But framing would cover up the little fish that swim on all sides of this piece.)