Lately I have sold several paintings to different wonderful collectors ,so over the years upon viewing my art for the first time I have heard ,"Your work reminds me of Van Gogh ,or Matisse ,Kandinsky and others too ." My reply has been IF I HAD INFLUENCED THEM THAT I HAVE BEEN VERY HAPPY TO HAVE HELPED ! LOLOLOL From the beginning of painting at twelve I allowed myself to learn from a multitude of cultures and artists as that was a truly revolutionary aspect of my education .I wasn't afraid of these challenges as by learning from others one understands yourself in a meaningful and profound manner. When I created my book about those three artist named Van Gogh ,Toulouse-Lautrec ,and Suzanne Valadon it wasn't their work that I wanted to copy so my aim was to capture their souls and spirits that spoke clearly to me over decades .Self hypnosis perhaps ? For thirty years now I haven't said....Let's paint like Rembrandt today or get the the intensity of Germaine Richiers' emotive sculptures in my current work .My desire as an artist from my formative years through now has always been KEEP TO THAT INNER VOICE OF YOURS ! This current work is memories of Italy, gardens from the US and even ponds that I developed in real life...but how about those colors as in this work it's hard to imagine that it came from my soul and years of observations ,and of course how about that magical musical harmony of nature ?Who doesn't love turtles ? FYI The stained glass musical theme is raised off the main canvas a few inches but securely held in place. About a third of the painting on the bottom right was painted with the highest quality oils while the rest was completed with lightfast acrylic paint. So now what ? I love this painting and whoever purchases it has my HOPE that it REMINDS THEM of ME! I am smiling now. I pay shipping and taxes in the US .Enjoy-------
