Purple Passion Flower

Moroccan Passion Flower (self portrait), 2001
Gouache, cut & torn paper on bristol board

During the time that I created Moroccan Passion Flower, I was spending a lot of time reading about color; it's meaning and symbolism, how colors interact and relate to one another, and the affect of color on the human psyche. This was also a time of great personal introspection and meditation, and I was creating art with fervor.

This painting resulted from many hours, standing before a mirror, sketching quick self-portraits in a linear style. I ended up with a stack of portraits--probably close to 50 of them--which I then dissected; taking the eye from one, the nose from another--piece by piece I worked. Eventually, I had a self portrait puzzle: me in different moods, me with different thoughts trailing through my mind, but all gathered together into one self portrait. That finished hodgepodge of paper became the basis for this painting.

Moroccan Passion Flower is about an artist (me) following her passion; thriving and growing like a wild vine as a result.