A True Friend Who Knows the Waters Is Better than a Thousand Sea-Charts
Pastel
Seascape
Soft pastels on white Canson 70-pound (115-gsm) acid-free paper
April 2010
Dimensions: paper and image 9 inches (about 22.9 cm) high by 11-1/4 inches (about 28.6 cm) wide
Three sailors clad in orange foul-weather gear navigate their small rowboat through wildly violent heavy seas, fighting huge roller-coaster waves, as the sailor in the bow of the boat points to the warm welcoming lights of a distant shore.
The spirit behind this pastel painting was as a heartfelt thank-you to a couple of sailor friends who had done me a generous favor ... a series of favors, actually ... helping me with a difficult, complicated problem that I had thought would be overwhelming. In my mind, I paired the seascape with a Kanji symbol for Gratitude, as you see here.
Modern life is so full of problems, and we seem to depend, more and more, on the crucial help of someone kind and knowledgeable. And wouldn't it be nice to be able to thank them, in a truly lovely and memorable way, for helping you navigate your way through the rough seas? So, I'm making this pastel available (1) elegantly framed, and (2) as notecards, printed on the finest papers, and (3) as an electronic image perfectly suited to send in an email or to use as a computer's wallpaper or screensaver. The natural beauty of Asian symbols -- sometimes called Kanji or Asian or Oriental Calligraphy -- lends your good wishes a gentle and graceful elegance.
The picture could just as easily be encouraging a sense of hope in the viewer; we can almost feel the joy of the sailors as they realize they will soon be safe on land ... and home. Or the picture could encourage perseverance, a quality of "don't give up now, when you're so close!" Whatever you would like to say, I will be happy to create that message for you.
Click here to email the artist directly. I'll be very glad to hear from you.
