“As the coffee was being poured, the Count wondered whether this was the beginning or end of the old man’s day. Either way, he figured a cup of coffee would hit the spot. For what is more versatile? As at home in tin as it is in Limoges, coffee can energize the industrious at dawn, calm the reflective at noon, or raise the spirits of the beleaguered in the middle of the night.” A Gentleman in Moscow: A Novel – by Amor Towles
Read this passage the other day and immediately it made me think of some of my artworks.
A series I am working on (slowly but somewhat surely) is simply called the “Coffee Cup Series”. It is based on travels, people, food, and conversations with friends and family. The common thread is coffee and how people connect over the sharing of this beverage.
These works are mostly based on photos I took during these conversations with friends and family and as with most of my work, has a sentimental attachment. So, I paint what I know. That doesn’t mean I can’t part with the paintings if there is an interested party, but there is always a story behind each painting.
When I began the series there were only a few recent photos (which had been taken with vague intent of painting). But when I went through my stored photos in the quest for something else I found LOTS of coffee cup photos! Now there are more photos/memories than I have time to paint!
The Cupcake painting was the pre-cursor to the series, done after not painting for a while and needing to get back into the swing of things. So, in a way it is connected to the series.
While looking for the pics of the new works, I came across older pieces. I’d like to think my work has grown since these were created (although I do like the brushstrokes, which are still an integral part of my work – most of the time).
The Art of Joy A. McGugan 