Ginspired, Updated

Still Life á la Ginny

Inspiration can come from literally anywhere. In the case of the still life, above, it arrived courtesy of a comment made by fellow artist/gardener/blogger, Ginny, of Gypsy Girl Grounded blog. In the post previous to this one, Ginny proposed I have a contest where faithful readers would send “a piece of art, a plant, a pot [and] a baby’s arm holding an apple” as part of a prize mix. Well, that disparate list of elements intrigued me; I decided to set up a still life using each of them, and based on Ginny’s blog. I knew I had a baby’s arm somewhere, and after a little digging, I found it. Part of an advertising display, it had broken off long ago but I liked its classically cherubic posture, so I’d kept it. And, being that this would be a Rancho-based still life, the apple in the arm’s hand would be a tiny cactus apple. Now, to gather the other elements on the list …

The “piece of art” is a framed abstract painting from the flea market; the “plant”, two succulents from the Rancho’s front yard; the “pot”, a ’50s-era dark green ceramic half-cylinder with a rusted metal surround that features shapely cut-outs. Additional elements include the lid and base of a glazed ceramic box, a spiky seed pod found on Mt. Rubidoux, and a large aged steel tray as backdrop. Ginny’s blog, artwork, and photographs, are colorful, but with a boho-religious-Latino vibe, that sometimes verges on the dark, so the items I chose for the still life reflect that by being both bright and dark, rich and saturated. Complicated … like you’d expect from a Gypsy Girl Grounded. Thanks for the inspiration, Ginny, I hope you approve of the still life you inspired.

Be sure and check Ginny’s blog here to see her still life based on the list of ingredients she suggested … Inspiration: it’s a two-lane highway!