
It’s 24 x 36, oil paint. I worked hard on it, first doing pastel sketches of the flowers because the flowers don’t last long and a charcoal sketch of the branches. Then I painted the background first which is a finished background.
This is one of the paintings that got stolen from my door when I was moving a few years ago and the key got stuck in the lock so I ran over to the apartment office which was about 100 yards away but they were closed because it was 5 already and when I got back to the new apt. the art I left at the door instead of putting back in my car was GONE!! Stolen by my would be neighbor. I didn’t take that apt and they gave me my money back to keep me from going on yelp. A few days later almost everything was returned to me by another artist who lives in the same complex but in another building. He wasn’t the one who stole it. The neighbor who stole it probably saw that guy carrying canvases into his apt. across the yard between the buildings and put my things at his door. He opened his door to go out and it was blocked by my art. His name was coincidentally Chris and he had a lot of his own paintings and wouldn’t take a reward. My phone number was on the back of one drawing.
That happened in 2020 at the start of the lockdown and I got a hotel room at the ocean front after vacating the old apt and putting my things in a mini storage. I enjoyed the hotel for a week and it wasn’t expensive then got the apt I’m in now and it is much quieter and safer than the apt. at the ocean front.
I was glad to get my art back. It was all my best stuff from so many years. This was a new painting from 2019. Every time I move I give away or throw away a lot of art because you never know when your number will be up and I don’t want to leave my daughter with hundreds of canvases so I get rid of a few at a time and now I’m painting on canvas paper a lot because it’s more practical for storage.
I don’t get a sentimental attachment to my paintings. They are all just another step to making a better artist of me. It doesn’t matter how hard I worked on a painting or how much time is in it. All my life I’ve been working many hours and never saw much money for my labor or got any praise for it. I’m just a worker bee. That’s what we do.
I had this hanging in my apt. for a few years but now I’m tired of it and I know I can do better. It’s not going to be a give away. It’s going directly into the dumpster.

It’s hard to get a decent photo of the painting because it’s a little shiny from my Maroger medium. I’ll paint the magnolia flowers again another time.