The Arrival

(working title)

medium: oil on linen

size:

This idea has spent years in the concept stage. The content represents an imagined meeting between predator animals arriving in New Zealand and the indigenous natives watching them approach. It's about curiosity, foreboding and a moment before everything changes. This is also a metaphor for western colonialism and the havoc this has caused those lands newly 'discovered'.

Here is the original concept drawing. As originally described, the idea has remained basically intact from conception. I struggled to find a satisfactory transition between the predators manning the boat and the natives on the land until I surrendered the idea of crashing waves and instead, adopted a still moment that the groups view each other across the span of water.

The Fog Warning

by Winslow Homer

I was inspired by the mood created by this painting. There is a stillness that I felt works better with my Arrival concept than the crashing waves of my initial studies.

#bloggingtips #WixBlog