The original idea was to create a simple still life with a blue bird and fruit. So, I gathered props from around the house, including blue and white porcelain, fruit and an arrangement of ferns, ivy and a bird's nest---some of my favorite decorative items. Then I set up several compostions with these props and photographed them. This way I had a variety of arrangements to consider and looked at each one with the plan to add a blue bird to the mix when I sketched the composition on canvas.
Then I ran into problems...artistically speaking, I don't like to copy another artist's work. Copying a great artist's work is a wonderful way to learn color, composition and techniques, but I want my own work to be as original as possible. Knowing that another artist in the Northwest uses a western bluebird as a signature motif in still life paintings, I didn't want to copy that. At first, I thought that using my own props and creating a more complex scene within the still life would be enough to overcome any similarities to another artist's work. However, as the work moved forward, I still wasn't happy with the overall scene. It seemed too busy for the space.
First I laid in an underpainting for the blue and white vase and then painted the design over that. Next, I painted the oranges and china leaving the bird's nest and greenery for last. I had originally planned to paint the bluebird standing on the edge of the nest, but as the painting evolved, I discovered that the composition felt complete as it stood. As in life, things don't always go as expected or planned.
To my eye, I'm drawn first to the brilliance and color of the oranges, then to the blue and white vase and finally to the bluebird eggs. Eggs are a promise of new life, new beginnings and hope for the future. So, I'm calling this one good.
