"Lakeside Cypress"
22" x 28"
Plein Air Oil on Canvas
copyright by Artist, Brenda Hofreiter
This painting was done at Blanchard Park, a lakeside park here in Orlando. You can see the playground in the distance and the banks of the swimming beach. The colorful red playground slides draw your eye into the background while the dappled light on the cypress trunks anchor the foreground. The lake's edge is softened by the grasses, pickerel weed and water lilies and a row of red and blue buoys separate civilization from the wild.
I thought I chose to paint this scene at first because I am such a sucker for cypress trees and water. As the painting progressed, I became aware that the composition I chose was a cameo that illustrated a point of harmony within the city. It shows a place where man and nature are peacefully coexisting. It is a place for our children to play and for our spirits to be renewed by the wildness of nature. I think we need more of these places within our cities, don't you? I find more analogies now when I look at it - the cycle of life comes to mind. Can you find more? It's interesting to me how the inner meanings of a painting reveal themselves to you over time. They becoming richer and deeper and reveal more of the truth in your heart than you had imagined. Try and look at the images you surround yourself with. What do they say about who you are and what is important to you?
