Redwood Lotus
Redwood Lotus
watercolor, acrylic, color pencil, silver leaf, and carving on paper. [Reverse side: Acrylic]
52” x 74”
2011

In this drawing, the woman sits cross-legged, sunning herself on the wide-planked redwood balcony of her home. A loose-filling black velour sweat-suit fails to disguise the frailty of her age. Her high feline cheekbones are caked rose and magenta. Her swollen lips are smeared red at the corners and flecked with small white specks of spit. Lost in a daydream, she is playing with a black plastic cigarette lighter – thumbing the wheel as it sparks but fails to flame.