In addition to wildlife, I also enjoy painting the human figure. It is exciting to capture someone’s expression with paint. In a series I did last year, I used my nieces as models and attempted to express what it is like to be childlike. Children have many qualities that often get left behind as people age. In these two paintings from the series, I used the setting of a playground and my color choices to illustrate some of these qualities. 

In Joy, I captured a moment of a young girl getting ready to go down the slide. The setting of the playground accentuates the childlike feeling that is already found in her expression. I also chose colors that would suggest playfulness and childlike joy. 

In Curiosity, I attempted to depict the childlike curiosity that many possess in learning about and discovering the world. In this painting,we see a young girl in the act of climbing on top of the monkey bars, an action that adds to the idea of wanting to learn and see things new. The girl’s expression is a very important part of the painting, and she looks off into the distance as she appears to be pondering something. I wanted to contrast the thoughtfulness of this expression with vibrant and playful colors.

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