The Beautiful Blend of Wine and Art

The Beautiful Blend of Wine and Art

Gardenia and Merlot  | 9×12 inches  | Oil on Canvas Panel

Wine is part of my ritual when I paint in the afternoons and evenings. A single glass will last me for hours. It is the mood that the music and wine creates that I love. It makes me feel creative and energized. I imagine how the painting might be enjoyed in someones home enveloped by the same ambiance. Also, I tend to get a little tight about mid-way in the process as I am working through the challenges of the painting. So, too avoid overworking a painting I find music and wine help me keep loose.

When a painting is finished there are wonderful parallels between wine and art. Many painters strive to create objects of beauty and interest. They interpret ideas or experiences through a blend of shape, color, composition, and texture. When they don’t hit the right note a painting can be flat or so out of balance it is boring or off putting. Much like a sad wine that lacks complexity or just tastes awful. But, when the artist gets it right there an astonishingly beautiful balance that can be at once stunning yet subtle and complex and reveals new delights the longer it is explored. Like a good wine that is perfectly blended and aged – full of complex aromas and flavors – enjoyed more deeply the longer it is savored.