The fleeting colors of spring are set against a grey winter background in this portrait of tulips and pussy willows in an heirloom vase.  All elements of the bouquet and backdrop accompany the dancing cherubs with their unique movement, from the flowing silk to the curling fantail willow branches. 

So many precious things just don't fit into our lifestyles or our cabinets anymore.  The images of them, non-the-less, transport us in time and space to remind us of people whom we have dearly loved.  A painting takes up far less space and carries with it the same significance as the heirlooms they portray.  Here is the first painting in my series I call "You Can't Take it With You."

The title of this piece is a nod to A German Requiem by Johannes Brahms as well as to the secondary career of the farmer depicted in this painting,  the church choir director.   

Plenty of extra work lies ahead of this tired farmer, an artist in his own right, who takes orders to paint ghoulish jack-o-lantern faces on a crop of pumpkins for Halloween.