Between the Cracks...

Peony Row   Watercolor on Yupo   11 x 15

As we were using Yupo in class, I recalled just one other time, many years previously, that I had used the stuff.  The memory was crisp....sitting the warm sun on my patio and tackling the peony row there....on Yupo.  I remember the frustration of the meandering paint, the frustration of not being able to layer.  These days I am, hopefully, more accepting of such challenges.  After some looking, I came upon that older work "Peony Row".  At the time, I was still taking the best work to a professional to be photographed and, apparently, I didn't feel that my peony painting was worthy.  Pulling it out, after all these years helped me to see that it was better than I had thought.

One quick swipe of a wet brush on Yupo takes the stroke back to the white surface...well, almost.  I found that I really did appreciate the colorful residue left behind on these strokes.  Very sublime.

Putting away questionable paintings is a good trick.  Several years later, I am able to make a better judgement regarding its success.  Sometimes, I am quite aware that the painting really does suck.  And, surprisingly, sometimes the work is better than the image of it that dwells in my subconscious.  That was the case here.  A work that had fallen between the cracks has redeemed itself to me.  Let's not be too hasty to judge.