Oil paint on canvas
610x910mm
Unframed
I remember as a young boy thinking that my cousin who was 21 was old. My aunt who was only in her mid-30’s was ancient(albeit a pretty ancient), my German gran who lived in the house with us was 72, and well …. that age was literally inconceivable. I could not imagine being that old, so her age was a fusion of stories of long ago, my rich German heritage, her pain of growing up when the language you spoke made you an enemy of the state, my love for her and her love for me, and the culture and heritage she introduced to my young life. Pancreatic cancer couldn’t ravage her stories, her love, her heritage, but it took away the only thing it could – her life.
Ageing can be such a rich phase of our lives – “Together forever” invokes a new reality of that phase –
Who are they? Why are they positioned at such apparent odds? What do they talk about when they do speak? Where did they grow up? What did they do professionally? What makes them happy?
I wanted the couple in a quiet setting; the quietness of negative space around them can be enjoyed or it can be a quiet pain of loneliness that sometimes comes with ageing. Their relative positions creates subtle tension – at odds, yet together. Individuals, yet together forever!