Discomposure 40 X 40” X 1.5 oil and mixed media on stretched canvas 2008 (in private collection)

The idea was born one evening while visiting a friend’s home in North GA. He had seen my work and wanted me to paint something for his home. He had no idea what he wanted and left it up to me to come up with the idea. I took a look around his home and tried to capture a sense of his taste, and that’s all I had to go on. The rest of the story is a bit more whimsical.

My boyfriend and I had recently acquired a mixed breed Dachshund / Pit-bull, also know as the jaws of terror. She had already destroyed most of the pillows, comforters and other such things in our house and we were worried she would do more damage if left alone that evening. To play it safe we closed her in a lighted walk-in closet with plenty of food and water and thought this would save our belongings from her dreaded jaws.

We arrived home and found jaws had some how escaped through the door. She had ripped through the wood and the laminate. The door was destroyed. However, among the pieces of wood I saw something beautiful. I was amazed at the texture of the wood and the jagged edges that only a desperate Dachshund could create. I felt the need to make up for the destruction of a perfectly good door and create something beautiful for our friend. I decided the wood was a gift and this is what I will use.

I selected the perfect shapes and sizes, and painted them black. I then used the color scheme from our friends home for the background, arranged the fragments of wood and touched it up with hints of copper and gold. The end result has been the talk of the town. Our friend displays this work in a prominent location in direct view of all who enter. I am told that everyone comments on the painting and our friend is delighted.

Art is finding beauty in everything.