In the beginning of February I was commissioned by my Aunt Sarah to paint a portrait "my style", of her mother and father (Patricia and Rodney) and their family, for the celebration of their 50th wedding anniversary. Sarah sent me several pictures of all the family members, as well as the wedding photo of her mother and father. I agreed and put together a sketch.
Almost immediately afterwards I got extremely nervous. What if her parents didn't like it? What if I completed it and it wasn't what Sarah wanted? What if I didn't complete it on time? A 50th wedding anniversary is a big deal and I wasn't feeling inspired at all. I really felt I had agreed to complete something I wasn't going to be able to do well and this was not a situation I wanted to let anyone down in. I felt honored I was asked to even do this, I couldn't let Sarah down.
Then 2 things happened:
- There was a massive snow storm and my company was closed the next day (yes to getting paid for not working!)
- I remembered the one thing that inspired me as nothing else can: David Lynch's film Dune.
I put the movie in and before you could say Maud'Dib, the painting started flowing and I couldn't stop. I started at 9:30 Tuesday evening, stopped to sleep at 12:30, woke up at 9, started up again and painted straight through to 11 the next evening. My bed sheets are now covered in paint (terrible place to paint, I know) and I think I ingested a lot of acrylic paint, but none of that mattered. I loved what I was painting.
The most difficult part of the painting were the beards and moustaches (and wouldn't you know, every older male in the family has a beard and moustache) and capturing the loving couple for the centerpiece.
I can't tell you how many times I ended up restarting both Rodney and Patricia. First the nose wasn't right, then the eyes, then I'd get the nose and not the eyes and accidentally wipe away the nose. It was tough, but I knew I wouldn't be happy with that painting if I didn't get it perfect.
So it ended up taking me 2 more days just to get the celebrated couple complete. And I couldn't be happier with the outcome. This is, by far, one of the pieces I am the most proud of.
Sending preview images to Sarah helped a lot. I got many texts back saying "You rule!" and "it's gorgeous" and my personal favorite "I'll bring you the cash next saturday, k?".
The subject matter also helped. I could see the love in the pictures and the happiness that surrounded all the members of Patricia and Rodney's family. I loved that I was able to be a part of their celebration. 50 years happily married is definitely something to celebrate, something I hope I am lucky enough to have.
After the presentation of the painting, Sarah let me know that her parents loved it. I couldn't have been happier.
Then yesterday I recieved an email from Rodney and Patricia thanking me for the painting:
"writers can write stories or poetry regarding love and a successful marriage, but an artist can paint her interpretation of the couple's marriage... Your lovely painting depicting our six children and four grandchildren has captured the very essence of our 50 years together and it will hold a prominent place in our home for the remainder of our lives."
Reading those words not only made me overwhelmingly happy that they were pleased with the painting (I was really worried about that), but also helped me to remember I am on the right path. Sometimes work and life can get you down, especially when you feel you aren't truly pursuing your dreams. Then, when you get to create something that you are passionate about, body and soul, and that, in turn, affects other people in the same way, life couldn't get any better than at that moment.
Thank you Rodney and Patricia, for letting me share in your celebration and helping me get a glimpse of light at the end of the corporate tunnel. It really meant so much to me to be a part of this.
And Sarah rocks too :D