At last
I bought this canvas (1m80 x 1m30) about six years ago. It didn't fit my car, so I had to rent a van to transport this doozie. For years it got dusted at our attic. When I looked at the blank canvas all kind of images popped inside my head what I could paint.
A field of flowers
Abstract lines and spaces
Big flowers zoomed in
A city made up of fresh bold colors
Soft feminine silhouettes
A group of women
Big faces with red lips
Jazz musicians in black & white
...
And then suddenly I start doing it instead of thinking about it. This is the result of 2 hours preliminary study and 2 hours of painting. It became a painting with no flowers or jazz musicians or skylines,... all the previous thoughts where forgotten. But maybe this also belonged to the process, so I actually worked at this painting for SIX years?
Yeah well, you probably know the legend when Pablo Picasso was sketching and a woman approached him?
"It's you, Picasso, the great artist! Oh, you must sketch my portrait! I insist."
So Picasso agreed to sketch her. After studying her for a moment, he used a one pencil stroke to create her portrait. He handed the woman his work of art.
"It's perfect!" she said. "You managed to capture my essence with one stroke, in one moment. Thank you! How much do I owe you?" "50 000 Pesetas", Pablo replied.
"But, what?" the woman sputtered. "How could you want so much money for this picture? It only took you a second to draw it!"
To which Picasso responded, "Madame, it took me my entire life."
You still got to love that guy.
Quoted from How to charge, one of the archived posts on 1099 — “the magazine for independent professionals.”
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