The Elements Of Love started out as just a painting of a heart. Beginning with layers of paper, then acrylic paint, the ideas began to unfold. Love, traditionally represented by the heart, surrounded by golden flames of passion, graced with a crown of thorns ties in with a religious aspect for some but for me speaks profoundly of the creative energy, the pain and sorrow that love so often brings. And at the same time among all those qualities, love also takes on a tender and white lace-like innocence. Birth, death, and the passions of life are all represented in this painting.