Wonder Years

No.  Not the TV show.  Though I must admit that my crush on Winnie Cooper has yet to faulter.

Below are two paintings - actually, let me stop and correct myself for a second.  It's one painting.  A diptych.  One composition in two parts.  The patrons who commissioned it have since decided to hang it separately, albeit in the same room.  I'm not sure how I feel about that exactly.  I guess I'm okay with it.  It's their property now.  Not mine.

When I was commissioned to create this work, the topic was sort of predestined.  The couple who ordered the piece are friends of mine and they wanted a painting for their then unborn daughter. So, I painted childhood.  I thought back to the time of childhood when things were filled with wonder and mystery.  Discovery and simple joys.  Gum balls and crayons. Dandelions and earthworms.  Colors streaking the summer sky.  And then I painted it.

I was once told by one of my college professors that who we are is dictated by where we where when.  That is very true.  The fact that I grew up in a tiny town that barely dots the middle of Illinois contributed to the person I am now.  The fact that I'm here now continues to shape me, and my art.  Enjoy.