oil on canvas, 24" x 24"
Not sure what prompted me to paint this, except that I've been wanting to tackle it for quite some time. It was painted with both brush and palette knife, and I am especially pleased with how her bodice turned out. I wanted to keep it somewhat abstract in design, and yet the pattern does have, for me, a certain logic that I find oddly pleasing. I also like the black "halo" around her head formed by the chair back; it seems to give her a regal quality which I'm happy with. I was hoping to give her some gravitas. This is the third in a series of "Bird Girl" paintings that I'm amassing (actually, the fourth -- the second one I've never posted). Birds are a symbol of freedom to me, and I like to associate females with freedom. It is my wish that one day all females of the human species will unclip their wings, fling open their cages, and fly free.
