The Pines

Oil Painting on Gator Board

Study of Native Pine Trees –Coral Gables, Florida

I did not realize the power of a Pine until this morning when I watched them up close. I was not happy with the way the pines looked in the mural. I could not put a finger on it so I decided to head out to study some of the Pines that are still standing. Like most of really interesting things it is the “negative space” that makes them special. Only by studying an object can I view the space around it. The object, size, proportion and texture are defined by the surroundings. The shape of the space between the leaves and the trunk defines the tree itself. Seeing them both at the same time and seeing them as the plain shape is the truth of learning to see. And that is the secret of learning to draw and paint.

At seven this morning I learned about the truth of the Pines. They are definitely defined by their openness. This makes the tree  not merely a thing but more a statement of free air. This was wrong with what I already had painted on the wall. The Pines on the wall were dense and thick with needles. Nice colors, good shape, but no space between them.

Why would I go through all the trouble of waking up early, putting bug spray all over my body (the mosquitoes bite even through my clothes), get coffee to go and plant myself under a tree to paint? I mean, I could have taken a photograph last night, take the memory card to Walgreens and bring the picture home. I would have been able to study the exact same shape of the tree  in bed with a cup of coffee on the night stand. No.

Painting outside is an act of faith. Being exposed to the elements means you are a part of them. Being surrounded by the life-force itself means I am taking in that energy. Trees have energy and so does the wind. My picture will soak up that energy. The more difficult the circumstances have been in the past the better my paintings have become. That is just an observation. It feels like the more I surrender to nature and let God do its work, the more spontaneous and vivid my paintings become. I feel there is another factor at play when I paint outdoors. I feel connected, I feel I have a purpose in life and I feel thankful to be part of the bigger picture.

My mood changes for the better even when the circumstances are really hard like last week in temperatures of 105 degrees, or at the other extreme when even the coffee froze on the rim of my cup in -30 degrees last winter. This is my purpose in life; “To make God’s world visible for all the people in the fast cars who are driving by and can only allow themselves to watch the other cars and traffic lights.” Most people don’t notice the morning glow on the trunks of the patient Pines. They bring memory cards loaded to 250 pictures to Walgreens and look at two dimensional photos of their vacations. Being disappointed to see what they thought was beautiful but are now surprised -wondering why the pictures look so dull.

I will tell you why. You are missing the third dimension. I as an artist (any artist will do) am able to add the suggestion of this dimension to the painting, adding my soul, the plants soul en the negative space that surrounds it, The Universe so to say. This is truly magic. There is no magic to a photograph (unless an artist has put his vision unto it). The object/subject might be the same, the value is not.

Now you know that negative spaces have nothing to do with negativity. On the contrary. It is the space that defines the subject. It is the pauses in a song that makes the words stand out, it is the break in a poem, its the lines of white between the written word… it’s all that is said without saying it loud. It’s the lack of anything that makes something into a thing. This is the no-thing. As a philosophical statement I would add to it that God exists in the big and small Nothing. It is available for everybody. Just become quiet and you will feel it.

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