But not indentured.
She’s going to grace someones’ wall on one of our sister islands, St. John also one of the US Virgin Islands. Thanks to the exposure by a new home design company here, Coco Design in Christiansted, this piece was introduced to her client and she’s now left my home and is on her way to another. Thanks Jennifer!
Of all the paintings I’ve posted on this blog over the years, she’s had the most hits of any of the others. I’m hoping to find the looseness that birthed her as I start another one. You can approach the canvas the same way, with the same intentions every time. Sometimes it’s a real struggle, sometimes the magic genie controls your hand and brush and sees to it that your angst never wakes up. This was just that for me.
From a chapter in the book that someday may chronicle my passage from NYC to the Virgin Islands, you can better understand the title: ” I Used To Have a Concierge, And Now I Have A Machete “.
You can’t take down a papaya from a tree with a butter knife dearies:
It’s the all purpose tool for the modern city dweller who can no longer ring the intercom to request a repair. If at first it doesn’t work, hack, hack again.
And because I know how fixated you all are on this little face, consider Cloud, as seen by Rousseau.
And Chili Pepper, as seen by the Sunkist company, if their ad men only knew where to find him:
He said forget it, he’s not selling out.
Tags: Caribbean Oil Painters, Cloud as seen by Rousseau, Machetes or Knives, Selling Art, Trinidad Market Girl
Asheville: The North West of The South East 
April 16, 2010 at 6:25 pm |
Awesome painting. Awesome photos. 😉
Paz
April 16, 2010 at 8:22 pm |
Thanks Paz- I know you love those animals.
April 16, 2010 at 7:10 pm |
Congratulations Bonnie! The loose brush strokes are great, and those bits of bright red… yet her expression and posture come through so clearly. And aren’t those papayas she’s carrying? That’s one awesome machete you’ve got!
April 16, 2010 at 8:24 pm |
Ever the astute island man, yes those are papayas and wasn’t I lucky to beat out the Pearly Eyed Thrashers in getting this one off the tree before they did.
I’m transfixed at the adept wielding of these swords by some of the older down island men who use these in place of chain saws. You know they don’t worry about building up their triceps.
April 16, 2010 at 7:19 pm |
Congratulations on your sale. The “Cloud is gorgeous and the “Chili Pepper” is very wise!
April 16, 2010 at 8:25 pm |
Leslie- thank you. And you’re right about the wisdom in that Chili face.
He is owl like in his all seeing, all knowing posture.
Thanks for coming by here again and leaving a comment.
April 16, 2010 at 8:58 pm |
Lucky wall of lucky new owner of beauty fruity girl! It’s always hard to let the best ones go. Do you have visitation rights?
Oh, oh… darlin’ Cloud a la Rousseau! Clousseau.
Dog forbid Chili and Rumi should ever meet. Cats in cahoots!
April 16, 2010 at 11:23 pm |
Sam you am. Funny.
Clousseau – the hilarious result of smashing the atoms of one cute pup and one fave movie character.
Jala and I always thought that Cloud and Rumi should be roomies but I think you’re right about Chili and Rumi.
April 17, 2010 at 1:08 am |
Machetes? Do I see some knife work in that painting? Love the scraping off. Always brushwork (knifework?) with energy and attitude. Island epitome. Beautiful.
April 17, 2010 at 1:27 pm |
Sharon- I’ve been tempted to work with knives ( of the palette variety ) but so far only use them for mixing color. But recognize how well they work for those sharp details that brushes can’t duplicate. Might be a fun experiment when there’s leftover paint on the palette.
April 17, 2010 at 1:20 am |
Surely the second Chili Pepper is photoshopped, yes? Gorgeous everything and love your wit.
April 17, 2010 at 1:29 pm |
Nancy- no animal has been harmed or photoshopped in the making of these images. Merely the efforts of a maniacally obsessed pet owner with a camera strapped to her neck and very compliantly cute animals. And thanks for the big ups.
April 17, 2010 at 12:03 pm |
Laughed out loud at the pearly eyed thrashers. I’ve seen them myself from time to time. Congrats on the painting, it’s a nice one, but the Clousseau gets the prize.
April 17, 2010 at 1:31 pm |
JoAnn, I’m so with you on who the winner is. By a long shot. And now I have to start calling her Clousseau because it’s so damn perfect.
April 17, 2010 at 2:01 pm |
Clousseau! Perfect. Honestly, I may have to get a pet if you keep this up and I started off in the minus column on where that was on my list of to-do’s.
I love that this proud lady has a home near her own roots. Jean Nouvel, the architect, was on Charlie Rose the other night talking about what a smackdown he and the curator had with artists who wanted all white walls inside a museum he was building in France. He wanted a dark color, maybe even deep red. It was a long (and difficult to understand because his accent is strong) explanation but the jist of it was if you put a sculpture of a animal out in the forest where it actually lived, people would be up in arms..Oh, you can’t do that! But, if you take it and put it in a room surrounded by antiseptic white walls, people think that’s great. The idea of revealing life where it actually is struck me. Of course, that may not have been his point at all!
April 17, 2010 at 2:38 pm |
Too many opinions and everyone has to have one. Do you find Charlie Rose to be sometimes very annoying in the way he interrupts his guests and doesn’t allow them to finish their sentences?
Maybe in this case, he’d have been justified.
I like dark, myself.
April 17, 2010 at 3:05 pm |
Bonnalaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa,
I’m still laughing at “sold, but not indentured”
Congratulations on selling another brilliant painting. She’s a beauty and I hope she is happy in her new home. I bet she will miss Cloud and Chili. I know I would. Thanks for always keeping us up to date on the cuteness of your doggies and kitties.
April 17, 2010 at 4:14 pm |
And the reason you laugh is because you have a highly elevated sense of humor!
Thanks Carolla- for the great comments- always.
April 17, 2010 at 6:57 pm |
Congratulations on the sale! This has such energy and fabulous brush strokes.
Loved the play on words! You’re the best! And, those animals—-wow. Scary cute.
April 19, 2010 at 12:24 pm |
Melinda- for the times we have doubts about our work, and don’t we all, they are quelled by the opportunity to have someone want it enough to buy it. Now if I could focus more attention on the easel and look away from these critters, maybe I’d get somewhere!
Always glad to have you stop by.
April 17, 2010 at 10:56 pm |
I truly love that painting, congratulations. I would miss her..but perhaps you’ll still have visiting privileges?
Clousseau: how perfect is that?
What the hell are “pearly-eyed thrashers”? It sounds like a grunge band.
I will look very forward to reading your future book by that title!
So you’ve tried painting with brushes, details with palette knives, and cutting down papayas with machetes. Which brings us to your next logical endeavor: painting with machete!
April 19, 2010 at 12:32 pm |
Jala- I took some good photo references of her as a means of reminding myself of what I want my work to feel like. She started out fresh and stayed that way.
Clousseau is totally perfect. As in, ” Does your dog bite?” ” That is not my dog”. Ahhh, I loved those movies.
Pearly Eyed Thrashers do not entertain in mosh pits. They’re aggressive birds that have very lovely eyes, belying their two inch long beak which they use to peck at your almost ripening fruit, destroying eggs of other birds and stealing lunch from any unattended lunchbox at recess.
If I had to paint with a machete, I’d need gallon cans.
Should I start a collection for the cause?
April 17, 2010 at 11:04 pm |
WOW! What a painting! It is vibrant and full of life … gorgeous!
April 19, 2010 at 12:55 pm |
Jay- thank you for the all caps endorsement. It perpetuates my desire to get to the easel.
April 18, 2010 at 1:51 am |
She has a feisty independence that captivates, colors are amazing.
April 19, 2010 at 1:05 pm |
Thanks so much Tina. I’ve just come from your and your fathers’ blog and can see where you get your inspiration from.
I appreciate your comments very much.
April 18, 2010 at 3:48 pm |
Congrats and thanks again for making me smile, Bonnie!!!
April 19, 2010 at 12:56 pm |
Marian- so glad to know that smiles can carry thousands of miles when airplanes can’t leave Europe.
April 19, 2010 at 7:58 am |
P.S.
Cleo is feeling so lonely.
April 19, 2010 at 1:06 pm |
Jala- tell Cleo to check YOUR inbox.
April 19, 2010 at 1:27 pm |
In response to your query about Mr, Rose, the answer is yes but. The but being that he always has artists, architects on you never ever see on other programs for that I give him a thumbs up. I love listening to architects as they are more like philosophers!
May 7, 2010 at 2:25 pm |
magic genies seem to appear regularly for some … others are just left holding bottles.