Bubbling with Excitement

I opened the email pensively. When I read it, I was beyond excited. Both my boys had landed roles in their school play, The Wizard of Oz. As my excitement bubbled, I knew I wanted to personally express creatively what the story means to me. I had never before attempted to illustrate a story through a painting. I felt a bit perplexed at first and then it started to unfold.

An underpainting is part of my process, my mind jumped to what this could be. The first thought I have whenever I think of The Wizard of Oz is the song “Somewhere over the Rainbow.” As a singer myself, music always draws me in and really becomes the focal point of any story. So, I thought why not create the underpainting as a beautifully brilliant rainbow.

I was very pleased with the completion of the underpainting. The rainbow was exactly what I wanted. I knew even then that I wanted to leave components of the underpainting exposed so that the rainbow permeated the story. I also thought that given the fact that music is a key component of the play that I would include music notes somewhere along the way.

Next I took to laying down a yellow brick road. I wanted the road to travel to different places in Oz in a sequence that matched how the actual play unfolds. I decided that in addition to creating the places that I wanted to create visual representations in the form of squares of each main character. As you look at the piece, you should be able to find three blocks each dedicated to expressing the Scarecrow, the Tinman and the Lion. Dorothy I decided to represent through the red ruby slippers that are sprinkled throughout the entire piece representing key places she visits. These slippers are represented by a bright red sparkly square.

I wonder if you’ll see the Wizard. Since he is quite a character, I thought I’d hide him in an interesting spot. I’ll leave you to figure out where he is.

To wrap up things, I did not want to call the painting by the name of the play. I named the piece I am Worthy, as for me, that is the main message of the story. I feel that my boys working hard to get the role as well as the work that goes into the production teaches them a sense of self worth that is invaluable. So, the name is even more fitting. I hope you will enjoy gazing at I am Worthy as much as I enjoyed creating it.