Emotional Connections

Curious watercolor by Meera Rao 10x14"

I painted this earlier in the year, about a year after her first birthday. It took me that long to get the courage to draw and then paint. I used several photographs as reference but one photograph that my daughter took of her niece became the basis of this painting. Her days are packed with play and curiosity and I am pretty pleased that I captured that sparkle in her eyes   I painted her eyes first and once I was satisfied with it, painting the rest of her became easier and pleasurable. 

Now I have to get busy and paint her 2nd year portrait as well as her newborn sister :) I hope to have at least one painting for each every year. It definitely  has been most satisfying to paint my grand daughter.  Arne Westerman in his book 'Paint Watercolors filled with Life and Energy' says "the artist must know that his emotional connection is only the starting point for a meaningful piece of work. There must be passion that drives the painting, followed by the creation of a solid composition. Thus the final rectangle will not simply be a statement of feeling or mood or a picture of something. It will be a complete painting with shapes, values, rhythm, color and balance, as well as subject matter. "  And I hope in the end my grand daughter will like it too !