The Blue Part of the Flame

The Blue Part of the Flame: Part I

This series celebrates the pain that good memories can bring, as well as the joy that can still be created and shared in intense and difficult environments. It is meant to emphasize moments of warmth, trust, and light in the hottest part of the flame. Existing in these moments means embracing the bite of the flame to feel the joy that is harder to find without it's light. Memory is fickle. It is subject to the passage of time, the pressures of the present, and the contamination of emotions. They will evolve with us, whether it is wanted or not, changing shape, importance, and meaning. When memories are what remain, they can consume reality. The impact that comes after reminiscing feels like loss all over again, another reminder of why you are relying on memories in the first place. Is the pain worth it? 

a small oil study 6"x 6"

Yes. It is. Because the alternative is living in the coldness, the lack of comfort that comes with the refusal to strike the match. It takes a lifetime to learn how to walk the knife’s edge that is grief- stumbling forward on an ever changing and crumbling path, clutching the flames to your chest and trusting them not to overcome you entirely. 

This round, muted painting is the first in this series, The Blue Part of the Flame. The composition was taken directly from life; when a friend and I saw this bug, who, attracted to the light of the tea candle, was now swimming forever in the hot wax.

original reference photo for painting