The Calling recalled

An artist should always be improving their artistic talents and techniques I believe. We don’t stay the same, we improve every time we paint a picture, which of course means that some artwork that we do in previous years won’t always be as good as the later stuff. Of course, a lot of the time the earlier work is sold on to clients who love it. As indeed the artist loves it whenever they send a painting out into the world. Its just occasionally we get the chance to revamp a favourite painting, only because we still have it in our possession, and the opportunity has arisen for it to go to be exhibited somewhere new.

And that’s what I’ve done this week.

The painting in question is perfect for the title, the concept, the meaning, as far as I am concerned. And the way I painted it at the time, was the best way to do this acrylic painting on canvas, it had the magic within it that I wanted to capture.

But looking at it afresh this week, I can see instantly that I could improve on it. And I wouldn’t send a painting to a gallery unless I felt it was the best version of that painting I could do.

But in revamping it, I didn’t want to loose the magic that made it.

So I didn’t want to repaint it, not at all, I just wanted to go over what was there and make it…. better. A stronger painting.

The painting is entitled “The calling”. It is a triangular painting in that it has three things within it that are *calling* to each other, the woman, the moon, and the spirits. Every person who views it will have their own interpretation of whether it is the moon calling the spirits, the woman calling them, or they her. To add to the mystique she has stars garlanded in her hair. All of this I am happy with, but going over the painting, I have made the full moon brighter, the night sky darker, the spirits fuller, the woman’s cloak redder, her hair lighter, the stars more subtle. Everything is pushed towards better. I also wanted the spirits to be hinted at as they were before, and I can count at least thirteen faces there within them, forming within the energies …

But, and this is part of the magic, I know that other people will always find faces in my paintings that I haven’t planned…..