When first starting this painting, I most definitely felt a sense of intimidation. I found the massive, blank canvas to be both a daunting challenge and an opportunity. I wanted to not only ensure that I did each story justice, but additionally hoped to further build upon my own developing art style. Many of my previous works have contained motifs from my Chinese-Lebanese heritage (mooncakes, Arabic proverbs, etc.), accompanied by a dark blue background and humanoid figures interacting with larger-than-life subjects. Such elements can be seen within this project's final painting, interspersed between Phoebe's jade horse, Ethan's shirt, etc. Take note of the hand cradling a fish- a sticker found on the back of Zack's phone case- originally designed and created by Oberlin art student Dalia Tomikchil. To see more of their incredible work, check out @tommycone10 on Instagram.

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Looking back, one of my biggest challenges during the painting process was definitely figuring out how to position, angle, and overlay each object in a way that would allow them to both aesthetically and meaningfully interact. This challenge definitely resulted in a few ups and downs, as I found myself overthinking or being hyper-critical of the painting's composition. In the painting's later stages, there was even a risky moment where I entirely restarted a portion of the painting, slathering on a thick layer of paint for a new beginning. Spurred by this bold decision, I then proceeded to create.a small collage utilizing fragments of red envelopes previously given to me by relatives amidst holidays and celebrations.

 

This creative segment of the project definitely pushed my artistic and visual storytelling skills, as well as my adaptability. However, I am so thankful for all of the ups and downs along the way, as each situation played a role in how the painting ultimately turned out. 

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Photograph by Scott Webb.