Wednesday 14 April 2010

Poppies (A symbol of hope)

Poppies (A symbol of hope)


This was one of my very early paintings. I used it today on my other blog for two reasons. The first one is that when I came to my computer this morning there was an email from a friend who had been looking at this painting on a website where I had posted it a long time ago. She was commenting on it saying that they spoke to her in a deep way.


Strange she should do so on the very morning I was writing in my blog about not being able to paint at all. Poppies have a very special place in my life. I just love the beauty of them and their fragility. It does concern me that such a beautiful flower can be used to produce something that creates such havoc in the lives of many. But it is also a symbol of hope at memorial services at cenotaphs every year.

When I started painting I painted a filed of poppies, small poppies in a great swathe of green. I called it, ”Field of Dreams.” This was painted very soon after and the strange thing is that having painted it I hung it in a local inn. An old soldier spoke to me offering to purchase on the promise that I signed it. I told him it already was singed but when I went to show him I noticed I had hung it upside down so the signature was not obvious. He said he preferred it this way so this painting was sold with two signatures on it and can now be hung either way.

This blog is linked to my other blog where you can read of the:- A Big Step for Nettie

10 comments:

  1. Now I am scratching my head, Ralph. Two signatures and originally hung upside down? So something I could see myself doing! LOL

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  2. J'aime beaucoup ces coquelicots et la manière que tu les as traités. On peut sentir le souffle qui les agite. Vent du sud ou vent du nord??? On aurait envie d'y aller compter fleurette!!! oups!

    Le coquelicot symbole d'amour aussi!

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  3. Love the story and love the painting. Poppies one of my favorite flowers. Okay have to jump over to your other blog. Will I ever get my work done today? Have a great day.

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  4. Once, while going through a bleak time in ministry, I spoke to a group of church leaders and told them that I could see how dark times had written beautiful things onto their lives. One man, whose darkness was his wife's depression, received PATIENCE. Another, who was slandered and maligned, FAITH.

    But, I could see no beautiful thing in my own life out of the trouble.

    Hope, they said. At that meeting and later in letters and conversations. They saw hope, written on my life (must have been in very small print) and on the lives of others who knew the story.

    Your post today reminds me of that time, Ralph, and makes me take a look again from a different perspective (historical) at something that overwhelmed me. Thank you.

    Now, stop reading your comments and go PAINT!

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  5. Of course I read all the comments. I went to my space today to paint I sorted paint and thought about it then came back to read your wonderful comment. I will get there soon one day.

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  6. Super painting - you seem to have a lot of art from the past to post on this blog! I think the trick is just to paint anything with as little conscious thought as possible and then, a breakthrough!

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  7. ralph, i just noticed you are a fellow capricorn, how lovely! a few months ago i was praying to feel the strength of o'keeffe (my totem artist) and i asked for a sign of red/orange poppies, like her painting...i have been answered many times over and here they are again...as for your paintings, i have an experiment for you. write meaningful words all over the canvas from every direction, then paint freely and randomly over them. (IN the beginning was the word...and the word was with God...and the word was God...)

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  8. Another great painting and story, Ralph. Are they daisies as well with the poppies? Daisy is of course one of my favourite flowers. Your floral works are just wonderful. xx

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  9. Ralph, beautiful painting - poppies!
    and a beautiful story behind this art!

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