ばばの命日

5 years ago today, my grandma passed away. She was not what you think of an old lady. She was energetic, fashionable, and walked faster than anyone (I'll add that she always RAN up stairs). She taught wood-carving and she loved art.

I was painting this bird picture when my mom reminded me about the day. Then I started to remember what grandma told me about how Matisse used black: how he treated black as a vibrant color. I thought I knew what she meant because black always looked richer in his paintings than other artists'. It didn't lack color: it was a color. It's funny I admired grandma of the same thing every time I saw her wearing a black sweater. It never looked dull and boring when she wore black.

My grandmother with my daughter 8 years ago.

The white bird represents peace and the yellow bird hope. The acorn and berries are seeds for something good. This picture felt appropriate for me and for the world today. Hope you can see this from up there, Baba (grandma in Japanese).

Process 1: the beginning.

Process 2: I like the simplicity of this stage as well.
Maybe I use it for something.