Melanie Stokes Art

Category: The Story Behind the Painting

  • Thinking About Geraniums

    9×12 Oil

    If my Mama could come back as a flower, I think it would be a geranium!   (Now before you think I’ve finally gone off the deep end, hear me out.)

    This morning, after seeing the inevitable Mothers’ Day posts on Facebook, I went out to the studio to work.  I meant to finish up some things and clean up some things and pack some things for an upcoming trip.  But the geraniums were beckoning me – calling out to me – luring me into the yard to paint them!  So I did.

    As I painted, I began to think about how like a geranium my own mother was:  bright and cheerful, even in rain or hot sun; strong enough to stand, yet flexible enough to bend when necessary;  commanding my attention when it needed to be focused; growing best in groups, she brought joy to those around! (Being from a really large family may have added to her gregarious nature.)

    The shape, or non-shape, of a geranium bloom reminds me of Sarah Miller’s creative, spur of the moment, non-conformist spirit.  The organic, curved lines are almost musical as they show up “here, there and yonder” like the songs that would erupt from Mama throughout the day.  Just like a geranium, ready to burst with blooms, Mama was always ready to share a song!

    Yes, I can see my Mama in the bright colors and fun shapes of a geranium.  Oh, and the red is obvious to anyone who knew her – the red hair of the Fallin Family!

    Happy Mothers’ Day!

     

  • One of Those Days…

    Today was one of those days… you know, when you have a “to do” list that needs doing, you are supposed to be somewhere to meet someone, the weather is finally looking springy and you want to be outside, and then you realize you can’t decide where to begin.  SO you just go in the studio and get lost in paint.

    As I was sorting through projects, I came upon a canvas I had painted over  already. There were hydrangeas on the first layer, an abstract I had started on top of that, and today I just picked a few  colors and pulled paint over the already bumpy texture.  As I was doing this, mindlessly, and waiting for inspiration to hit, I noticed a landscape hanging in my line of vision that had the same dimensions as this canvas.  What if I followed the lines of the landscape, but made this one more abstract and used these cool blues and greens instead of the yellows and oranges in the first one?

    melaniestokesart.com
    Another Day 11×14 acrylic $125

    Hours later, a painting emerged that I like.  And my mind began to draw conclusions. There are days when it feels like things don’t fall into place.  There are days when life overwhelms us.  There are days when we just have to give God the tired self that we are and see what He can do with it.  We might just come out “repurposed,” “recycled,” and “renewed!”   And ready to tackle more of the “to do” list tomorrow.  I’m hoping so.

  • Is it Spring Yet?

    I’m so glad I live in the South!  Though it’s unseasonably cold this April, I don’t think I could stand it any further north.  And one reason I want springtime weather is that means it’s time to enjoy painting en plein air!

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    I recently enjoyed a few days painting on the waterfront of Saint Mary’s, Georgia.  The breeze was enough to keep the sand gnats at bay and the light was wonderful.  It’s always interesting to meet the people who happen by and want to watch.   Thank you to the “random photographer” who happened by and sent me this photo.  I didn’t get her name but maybe she is reading this.

    melaniestokesart.com
    Gilman Park 9×12
    Oil
    $80

    Here is an updated 16×20 version, painted in the studio.

    melaniestokesart.com
    Day in the Park
    16×20 oil
    $225

    And one more, painted from my photo taken the same week.  Springtime in St. Mary’s is gorgeous, but remember to take bug spray!

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    Christ Episcopal Church, St. Mary’s GA
    12×12 Oil
    $110

    Looking forward to Plein Air South in May!!

     

     

     

  • Painting From The Inside

     

    melaniestokesart.com
    “Man of Sorrows” 9×12 Oil

     

    Several painter friends and I met inside the Sacred Heart Cultural Center, in Augusta,  and searched for something to paint for a couple of hours on a cold, March day.   The Sacred Heart Building, a former Catholic Church, was in disrepair for years when Pete Knox decided to restore and reopen the beautiful building.  Today it is used for weddings, concerts, parties, and a variety of art events.  Yet, the architecture, the stained glass, the sculptures and ornamental details are still rich with Christian history.

    In the quiet, hollow cathedral, I walked around looking at light and shadow, colors and lines, repetition of shapes and tried to find a focus . . . and then I saw it . . . the face of Jesus carrying his cross.  It was on one of the “Stations of the Cross” relief sculptures that line both sides of the building.  I saw what I needed and pulled out paint to begin.

    As I painted, a hymn tune  began to play in my head:

    “Man of sorrows what a name
    for the Son of God, who came
    ruined sinners to reclaim:
    Hallelujah, what a Savior!”

    (and the song kept going over and over for another hour while I painted, know what I mean?)

    Yet, as I painted the face of Christ, I saw pain,  sorrow, rejection and exhaustion.  melaniestokesart.com And I hummed to myself, “man of sorrows, what a name for the Son of God who came…”

    I remembered his love and marveled at his endurance.   I noticed the figures around him in the sculpture, some helping him carry the heavy cross, some mocking him and some perhaps begging him for one last miracle.

    I worshipped through paint as I studied the face of Jesus and sang in my soul, “Hallelujah, what a Savior!”

    This Lenten season is a good time to look on the face of Jesus, listen to His Spirit and remember.

     

  • Progression of a Painting

     

    It all began with a photo, my photo, taken on a sunrise walk at the beach.  I truly believe that a painting is not all mine unless I am the one who took the photo, the one who visited the setting, the one who had the experience in order to be able to share it.

    Back in the studio, I revisited that morning by first painting a small study to establish colors, lines and composition.

    melaniestokesart.com
    Good Morning
    9×12 Oil

    About a week later, I progressed to a 24×36 canvas.   I sketched the shoreline with charcoal and washed in a rose underpainting with Gamsol.

     

    The second photo shows the underpainting with liquid (Gamsol) washes of color.   The third step was to look for “darkest darks” and apply them with thicker paint.

    I thought I was finished when I reached this point pictured below, but after consulting some other artists, realized I needed to pull the viewer’s eye back into the painting.  An artist friend pointed out some “con trails” (I had to look that one up) in the photo reference.  I call them “airplane trails” and had intentionally left them out because they didn’t seem a part of nature.  But looking at my photo, I realized that was what attracted me to the composition in the first place.  The position of the trails were needed to hold the viewer in the picture plane.

    I love the addition –the “wake up, it’s morning!” feeling that the lines contribute to the painting.   And once again, an allegory comes to mind:  in trying to leave out the impact of civilization on the natural world, I was leaving out the accent mark that added much to the composition.  The Creator made this earth beautiful and then He added humanity as His icing on the cake.  I’ll remember that and try to stay sweet!

     

  • Strength in Times of Darkness

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    Strength in Darkness 11×14 Oil

    I showed this to my husband and asked,  “Who does this look like?”

    He answered with a question, “Us?”

    (Good answer, but not who I thought he would recognize.)  The models are his brother and sister-in-law.  But it could well be “us” with the sentiment behind it.   We are strong together, even in dark times.

    As I painted, I was impacted by the play of light against dark, the blinding strength of the sun, and the deepest cold darkness of the side away from the light.  I could feel the wind of that fall morning on the beach and the warm comfort of an arm around my shoulders.

    My Protector, My Strength, My Constant… all words that I use when I think about God and his relationship with his people.  But these words also come to mind when I describe my husband! (yes, really)

    It does not offend my worth as a woman for him to be the strongest, for him to be the bravest, for him to even be the tallest.  I know he loves me and is my best friend.  Almost forty years of marriage hold many stories of facing darkness and many blessings in the light.  The faith and principles we base our marriage on have held us together.   And in times of darkness the light always seems the brightest!  (ok, not immediately, but in hindsight…)

    This brother and sister-in-law have seen some recent dark times with health.  They have come through on the other side, ready for the morning walk, ready to soak up the warmth of the sun, ready to see light and all that it will illuminate day by day.

    Celebrating love, life and light!

     

  • Dandelion Gifts

    melaniestokesart.com

    “‘Tis a gift to be simple
    ‘Tis a gift to be free
    ‘Tis a gift to come down where we ought to be
    And when we find ourselves in the place just right
    It will be in the valley of love and delight.”       —Shaker Hymn

    I find myself humming the song in my head when I look at this painting.  Gifts of dandelion flowers from a child is one of the simplest gestures of love we can experience.  We know dandelions are weeds, even a nuisance to those who try to keep them out of their lawns.  But when a child picks a dandelion and toddles over to present it to you, you can’t help but accept it with gratitude to the giver and admiration for his choice!

    Accepting dandelions brings us down a level as we bend to reach the child.  A humble place, a different perspective.  And maybe, when we try to raise back up on our creaking knees, we will be reminded of the “place just right.”

    Tis a gift to be simple, a gift to be free… and a gift to be given Gifts of Dandelions.

  • Puddle Jumping – and how it spoke to me

    melaniestokesart.com
    9×12 Oil
    melaniestokesart.com
    9×12 Oil

    Puddles and Children – they seem to go together like peanut butter and jelly.  These brothers are always up for adventure!  Jumping in this icy, cold water in December was pure delight to them.

    Do you enjoy jumping into “icy cold water,” new adventures, or beginning any change?  Here is where I’m going with this… For years I’ve been primarily a Landscape Painter. I enjoy being outside and I enjoy painting about the beauty of this natural world.  I worship the Creator as I paint landscapes.   I have shied away from painting people.  (To be honest, I felt totally inadequate about it so I avoided it.)  So, today as I painted these grandsons, hopping with total abandonment, into these puddles, I realized “I think I have overcome my fear of painting people by jumping right in!”

    I do need to give Gina Brown some credit here.  She taught a figure painting class in October that rocked my world!  I don’t have to paint the faces.  I am capturing light and shadow on the figures.  I am focusing on the personality of the children and the activity.  And I love it!

    So, with New Year’s Resolutions in mind, and a leading that I can attribute to God’s voice, I am jumping into painting people.  Not portraits, but I strive to paint the activity of people, as life on this earth.  I am reminded today, my worship of God happens not just as I marvel at the landscapes He created, but also, as I ponder and enjoy relationships of people – relationships with each other, and with Him.

  • Pure Joy!

    melaniestokesart.com
    11×14 Oil
    Commission

    When a customer first sent me photos of her grandson on a horse and asked if I could paint it for Christmas,  I whined.  I really did.  I stressed over it and wondered if I could make it happen.  Horse legs seem very complicated!   I learned that these two are involved in a horse therapy program.   The more I worked with the subject, the more I became drawn to this determined rider and this kind horse and how I could best express the emotion of their relationship.

    I painted it this way.  I love the results.  But the best part of this painting experience was the message I received from the grandmother:

    “He keeps coming back and picking up the painting and says ‘Mimi, it is beautiful.’ Thank you again for bringing love through your paintings.”  

    This is pure joy to an artist when someone as special as he sees beauty in the artwork and feels love from it.  This affirms why I paint.  This challenges me to do more to express love and peace through my art.  This reminds me that it is a gift from God.  May I always glorify Him.   May I always be grateful for every opportunity.

  • “Sheltered”

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    Sheltered
    9×12 Oil
    $125

    Today was a day I got out early to paint en plein air! (For all my South GA friends, that means “outside”).  I had already scoped out some settings, thinking of the angle of the morning sun.  I had already marked some places off my list, thinking of the solitude of painting and personal safety issues.  So this morning,  I got in my little car and drove around the neighborhood, looking for vistas on the golf course.  After exploring a few,  it always came back around to the issue of flying golf balls.  Did I really want to put myself through that risk?  Not to be defeated, I drove back home, hiked around my backyard and just could not find anything that caught my eye.  As I rounded the corner of my home, the sunlight on the front porch seemed to say, “Here I am.  Welcome home!  Why not just set up right here in the safety and shelter of your own front door?”  It felt good to be home.

    Now, I’ve said before that God speaks to me when I paint.  He seems to use the metaphors of my subject matter.  That front porch looked so sheltered and comfortable, nestled against the strong trees and surrounded by firm ground.  And, the best part was I could stand under some shade trees while I painted. (Even so, my glasses were fogging up in the GA humidity!  I’m trying to paint outside for this 30 day challenge and the weather is the biggest obstacle.)

    But, as I painted, I thought about Shelter and how important it is for all to have.    I thought about what Shelter looks like to many different people.   I thought about my own sheltered life:  parents who did their best to shelter me from grownup problems,  a lifestyle of ease and provision, a husband who would go to combat for me, and a God who always, somehow, makes all things work together for good.  I’ve been sheltered.  Not in the sense that I’m not aware of all that is unjust, and sad, and evil about this world.  Not that I haven’t had disappointments and difficult times.  But, I’ve been sheltered and fed and loved.  And for that I am grateful and content.  May generosity grow from gratefulness!

    This is Day 27!  Only three more days of this 30 Day Challenge!