We all have places that have special meanings, whether it be the spot your child took their first breath, the field that allowed you to win that big game, or the where you met your first love.
For this project, I abstracted my favorite locations by using expressive colors and layering them to form this painting. The scematics of this piece involved looking at satellite photos of my favorite places, gesturally painting them to represent the general shapes of these places.
My Grandma’s house has been my safe place ever since I was little. As a child, Grandma and I would dress up in our Sunday best, me in sparkly dresses with hair braided, and her with a black slacks and a suit jacket. We would sit on the pourch overlooking a gurgling stream pouring out of a still pond, drinking tea and talking about school, or boys. No matter how old I was, she always made me feel less like I was baby needing a sitter, and more like a best friend. If you look closely at the painting, see if you can see the large aqua circular shape that represents that pond.
Next, I put in the bird’s eye view of Glenmore Mansion, the very special place I directored the Yellow Wallpaper. My crew and the actors were a delight to work with, and it was the thing that got me into loving the film. Watch the first minute of the yellow Wallpaper to see if you can find which squares look like the mansion!
Lastly, I added all the houses on my little street corner that I have lived in for 14 years. Many of my aunts and uncles and extended family live hours away. My neighbors filled that need. Throughout our pool days, at dusk variety shows, midnight walks, milkshake runs, and the rest, these people make our neighborhood more of a neighborhome.
Above it all, the title of this piece, talks about taking a step back- literally having a satellite view of things, but even more than that. This piece forced me to take a step back and look at the beautiful experiences, the places I loved. It’s easy to focus on the negative places, memories from the past or currently. Whether it is a mundane workplace, a flashback from a past location that hurts to remember, or simply wishing for a fancier house, life doesn’t always provide daily joy. It is in the stepping back, to see the satellite view of life, that fosters gratitude. And Gratitude is the deepest form of joy.
Above It All Acrylic on Canvas