16x20 inches, acrylic on canvas
I started this painting with the idea about expressing the bottles not just as an arrangement of coloured glass but rather an arrangement of precious objects, and then when I turned the spotlight on the arrangement the play of light shining through and on the bottles instantly made me think of coloured jewels: sapphire, black pearl, aquamarine, topaz and emerald.
What I’m really trying to do here is say something about how precious these bottles can be; the blue one on the left most precious of all, particularly valuable as it once held water. I actually liberated (stole?) it from a restaurant many years ago. If it was worth “stealing” then it must be worth something. (I thought it was unusual and pretty and worth taking it off the table without permission as a perfect addition to my collection of other unusual bottles).
As for the other objects, well, some can become addicted to the alcohol they contain, which is some kind of irony that something so pretty can be so harmful, (not only to the drinkers but sometimes to the victims of drinkers who’ve never touched a drop.)
So there’s a touch of melancholy in this painting, with the empty wine bottle tipped to one side (as if it in itself is drunk) and with the shadows and refracted light turning out in same colours of day-old bruises.
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