Balance – Floating Petals

Oil on Panel 6 x 6 inches

This painting is on a hardboard panel - acid free and archival.

Since I’ve begun working full time as a painter and teacher this year, it’s come home to me how difficult it can be to find balance.

There are lots of new things I’m having to try to find balance with. I’m trying to balance my love of painting with the need to produce and sell enough work to survive. When your next painting is your kids’ meals for the next week, your perspective has to change a little.

At the same time, producing work regularly has allowed me to start working through some ideas I’ve had in my head for some time, but haven’t been able to follow.

This painting took me three days, which is too long for one of these little paintings. But at the same time, I was exploring some ideas - about focus and edges, colour and the balance between low and high chroma and design. I used to do a lot of “top-down” viewpoints like this, and I seem to be returning to them - I think partly because of the opportunities for picture design they afford.

So for me this painting, my last of 2016, has been associated with ideas about balance from a few different perspectives. This year, I’ve been trying to find a balance between producing teaching videos and painting, between family life and work, and between work and rest. Although I’m mostly recovered from the illness I had at the beginning of the year, I still have to limit the hours I work to make sure it doesn’t return.

So I suppose it’s fitting that my last painting for this year has been associated with so many things that I need to try and find a balance in next year - like the way these tulip petals naturally found their own balance when they were dropped into the bowl of water.

Starting bid is $99

Payment is by PayPal - (although you can pay through PayPal with a credit card without having to set up an account, if you don’t have one).

How to bid

Just click the "bid here" link above and enter your name, email (this will be kept private) and the amount you want to bid.

The auction uses proxy bidding, which means you can set a Maximum Bid, and until that's reached, you're protected from being outbid. So if Bidder A places a Maximum Bid of $200 and Bidder B comes along to try and outbid A, A will be protected till B outbids A over $200.

You’ll be notified of any other bids and whether you’ve won the auction by email automatically. If you win the auction, I’ll send you an email with a link to pay by PayPal.

PLEASE NOTE: As the auction comes to a close, you’ll need to refresh the page to see the latest bids. It may look as if you’ve won when the countdown finishes, but you’ll only see the most recent bids if you refresh the page, so there may have been more bids that you’re not seeing!

Shipping

International shipping is by UK Royal Mail International (tracked) and can take a few days to get to you. I'll let you know by email as soon as I send the painting, and give you the tracking number. I’ll need to allow some time for the painting to dry thoroughly before I send it to you. Usually, a couple of weeks will be enough.

Returns:

If for any reason reason you’re not happy with your painting, you can return it to me within 14 days for a full refund. Buyer pays return shipping.

If payment isn’t made within three days of purchase, the painting will be offered to the next highest bidder or re-auctioned.