# 55 - The Journey and "Going Home at 5"

                                                           "Going Home at 5"

 
                                                            "Going Home at 5" (detail)

Fellow Art Lovers:

My Gosh, I’ve talked so much about pushing my painting style to greater freedom and greater expression. That is, making progress in my journey of transmitting emotion. If this sounds like a broken record, the best thing I can do is make sure that the record is at least short.

Okay, the painting you see here, ”Going Home at 5,” came about by chance. The place was at 8^th and Spring Garden Streets, just a block from my studio. Here, I saw a mother, her daughter and a baby in the baby carriage, and they appealed to me because the mom seemed to be one of those people who face life with courage. For me, this strength has a special kind of beauty, a certain urban beauty. (By the way, there is a actually a sheet-metal sign with the numeral 5 there, but I have no idea what it means.)   

My job was to show her and her children in their context, and get a feeling for them across to you, the viewer. There’s one major component in getting this emotion across to the viewer: I have to feel this myself, in addition to the painting skill and a whole bunch of questions like deciding what elements to use and placing each one of them in the right place. 

And, of course, my hope is that each time I undertake this kind of painting, it should be more and more successful each time I take up my brushes and palette knife. 

The painting should show that I’ve taken a few more steps in my journey of transmitting emotion to you by representing this beauty and emotion.

You be the judge, and if you have the time, you can tell me if you’ve been touched by this work.

Thanks for listening.

Best,

Bill