Tulips For Spring

I worked on this watercolor off and on for a couple of years, and I feel such a sense of accomplishment to have finally finished it. Sometimes a painting comes together quite fast. Maybe it's because it features a subject you have painted many times, but honestly sometimes it just seems to almost paint itself. Then again there are the paintings that you start and put aside, pick up later and work on and then put aside again, over and over. You like what you've started, but something about it doesn't compel you to finish it. Sometimes you're just waiting for that special something inside you to come and let you know how to finish it, aka your muse. That was Tulips by Midnight. It took a very long time for my muse this time!

Tulips by Midnight

So. . . have you ever had anyone ask, "How long did it take you to paint that one?" What exactly are they wanting to know, do you suppose?  I dunno.  Maybe it's just a simple question, but my analytical side doesn't quite accept that. Is it that they are asking how long it took so that they can multiply the number of hours you say by what they assume your work is worth per hour? It is that the painting looks so basic and easy that it probably took about 5 minutes and so the price would be very, very cheap? Could it be that it's just so good that they think it took you a very long, long time? Hmmm, well yeah! Of course, there is the tried and true answer that it took a lifetime. That is the real truth, because it is the sum total of an artist's education, their travels, time spent in the studio and en plein aire painting, exposure to other artists and mentors, and most important of all - their life experiences - the good, the bad, the ugly and the ho hum!

Tulips by Moonlight may be found in my Etsy shop, DreamON.