Lollipop

     One of the best things about childhood is how care-free and natural it feels.  A protected and safe child is free to explore the world and see it with his young eyes.  Everything is new.  Almost everything is of interest.  It is a joyful time before the weight of the world of adults comes ‘round.  
     In 2013, while carving marble for a Medieval Festval in Pontremoli, Italy, along the Magra River, I watched the children play and frankly, wanted to join them.  It was a relaxing weekend and reminded me of a simpler time.

     In this painting Lollipop, I not only wanted to capture that moment of a boy, oblivious to anyone else around him and just “being,” but also I wanted to paint with more texture [this is mostly a palette knife painting], get some depth into the image, and move away from the traditional skin-tone palette that I have learned in Florence, Italy.  I also was inspired by the colorful, yet subtle, skin tones of Czech painter, Vojtěch Adalbert Hynais (1854 - 1925) and gave it a shot.

       Here is Lollipop and I hope it brings back memories of freedom from worry and a time in which we accepted our natural curiosities about everything.

      This figurative oil painting rests on a primed 30-inch diameter circle of maple wood professionally made panels for oil painting.  It is an inch thick!  Ready to hang.  Here is a little taste of my painting methods in this 36-SECOND promo:

https://youtu.be/fmzTJ_1Msqo