Mother at the Gate

18" x 24" Pastel on Canson Mi Tienes Paper

I started this pastel painting years ago from a photo taken by my sister Melinda. I loved the bright colors of the morning sunrise and vividly remember my mother leaning on the back gate of the white picket fence anytime we drove away. Mother passed away ten years ago in February and I was intensely motivated to finish this piece as the milestone date of her death arrived. But neither Melinda nor I could locate the original photo I was using as a resource. I've stewed and torn my studio apart for weeks but haven't found the missing photo. When caught at home during this weekend's blizzard I pulled out the piece and plowed through finishing it from memory. I had to laugh while I was painting all those pickets. I never thought I'd paint white pickets again.