The Forsythia and Violets Flower Paintings Series of Contemporary American Floral Paintings are part of the "Cut Flower Paintings Series" but these pieces have taken a twist of sorts.  I have always enjoyed Forsythias being one of the first colorful flowering plants of the spring.  There would be bouquets of Forsythia stocks around the house signaling the arrival of the warm seasons.  Violets, in their delicate hardiness were similar in meaning to me.  They both brought a sense of constancy and foundation in my view.  

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       These large canvases include these flowers (obviously) but also are laced with 30 06 bullet holes.  These are in part a compositional element - the idea of the canvas surface being penetrated and being able to be passed through is of interest to me.  I always think about my art from in both a purist art sense.  Is the piece interesting as a piece of art? Also however, I am always interested in the implied meanings of images and subject matter in my work.  In the case of these pieces, why there seems to be a need to tear down and destroy so many long held values and precepts in this current time.