I’ve been hearing the term worst case scenario an awful lot lately, certainly in conjunction with the Deepwater Horizon disaster. We always profess to be prepared and at the ready should the worse happen. But like so many things, this show of confidence is usually unjustified. We rarely are able to visualize the worse that could happen in any situation, unable to calculate all the details and factors that might send us careening in directions we never envisioned.
With this in mind, when I looked at this painting the first thing that jumped to mind was something quite the opposite.
It is full of possibility and an idealized optimism. There is no trace of darkness or hardship on the path in this landscape. The horizon promises a bright future and seems close and reachable as the red tree urges you to come further along the path. And even when the path might dip below the next small hiil and the horizon leaves your sight, it is still all light with clear skies above. No need to fret.
It’s a Best Case Scenario.
From the moment this painting, which is a 4″ wide by 14″ tall image on paper, began to take shape, it possessed this very positive feel. Much of my work has an optimistic lean but it usually has a hint of darkness, a reminder of the malevolence that persists in our world. Maybe this painting’s unfiltered positivism was created out of my own need for refuge and hope after being buffeted by recent news from around the world. Perhaps its purpose was to remind me that there are best case scenarios out there to counter all the worst cases. That there are positive goals to which we can aspire. That there is light.
If so, it does it job well for me.
Redtree Times 