I Want to Tell You
24”x48, Oil on Canvas
“I Want to Tell You”
Oil on Canvas
This painting is a reflection on Motherhood. As I am traveling on this path of Mothering, I think about all of my maternal mothers before me. How they shaped the women who came after them. Generations. The habits, values, characteristics, good and bad and how we grow from them.
My Grandmother, my Aunt and Mother and I would go for long nature walks near our family lake cabin. She would teach us all about the flora and fauna along the way. As the years passed, the knowledge and love of plants traveled with us. Now my children go for walks with me and we talk about the plants we see.
Now I’m taking it a step further and learning about Floriography. The language of flowers. All flowers have meaning. Colors have meaning but also specific plants also symbolize different things.
This painting is a twist on the Madonna and Child portraits in that this woman is an ordinary woman walking with her baby. She is a saint in just being a mother. As she guides, sacrifices, forgives, leads, and honors. She interacts with her child as she talks to her about past generations as well as the future generation. The patterns in the background are a symbol of the generations. She stands on that pattern. Sometimes the pattern is broken, and sometimes a little cloudy but it’s always there.
The flowers are symbolic of: Regrets of not doing everything, Apologies for mistakes made, Hope for a beautiful future and unconditional love.