After spending two weeks with this beautiful field, including time spent talking the men with the big lawn mowers from mowing it down, I had an idea. I took all my small paintings back to the studio to begin a big studio painting. For me, a studio painting is a very different experience from a plein air painting. The concept is strong and the image is no longer present. It really is an entirely different process.
This one was for my Mom who died ten years ago. I began this painting on her birthday. Her favorite arias played in the background. When I first had the idea, I thought it would be about the emotion of 'longing'. Longing for my Mom's presence. But, leave it to 'hope'. Out of the Pandora's box she jumped again and inserted herself into the painting. So now it is about hope...hope for the future and the beauty of the past. I guess that is the human state.
Loriann Signori
Age 52
"Hope and Longing"
Pastel and Oil on board 21" x 28"
August, 2008
