What is an artist besides a painter of pictures? We are storytellers, reporters, gossipers, and we are the conscience of our community, the soul that steers us. Our paintings are more than what we are, they are more than what we imagine them to be. A girl resting on a couch is a symbol of what a soldier fights for, or simply what a dad is thankful for. A scene of sunlight streaming down through the tracks on Wabash Ave in Chicago tells of life in the city to the storekeeper in small town Iowa. Scenes of farms, new and old, tell about life in rural America. Watercolors of life in India tell us how close people are no matter what the distance is on a map.
Painters are travel agents, ambassadors, and salespersons. We sell life in small towns and in big cities with our works of art. Our abstracts wake people up to what man is capable of, to the beauty and interest in colors and shapes. We spark minds, soothe souls, enlighten and enrich with our art. We record for the future and inform of the present. We bring attention to the evil as well as the good. Paintings of children herding cattle in Africa and scouring trash piles in South America have all been brought to canvases by artists. A strange and sad beauty fills some canvases. We may dismiss a photo of such things but a painting makes one pause a bit longer, especially viewed in a gallery setting. Fine wine and caviar, beautiful slender women discussing the meanings of paintings of children selling flowers.
I sometime feel the need to express more with my art. I hope what I am doing is bringing beauty and soothing someones soul who is out there working to improve the world.
