Freedom Trap
A poem I wrote inspired by my painting of the same name.
This one is about our own definition of freedom.
The inspiration behind this poem is the painting as well as how I felt at the time that I created the painting.
©October 2018, Francesca Bandino, Freedom Trap. Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas, 16x16 inches.
Freedom Trap
Original poem by Francesca Bandino
Look into my soul.
There you will find
All of my complexities
I have nothing to hide.
Yet, it all remains
Shielded
Behind these bright eyes
I could go anywhere
Escape this place
That you’ve chosen for me.
Anywhere
Just to be free
But I already know
Where I want to be
You can give me
Everything
That I will ever need
But freedom
Weighs on my heart.
I won’t be held back
Now it is time
To let me go.
Featured Art: Dual Complexity
Woohoo! You get to see this first! This week I created a video explaining what inspired the creation of my painting Dual Complexity. I’m sharing this with you first (well, technically YouTube first, but that’s only because I need to put it on YouTube so that I can share it here).
I finally found the courage to talk about this painting for the strangest reason. A few weeks ago I was in a workshop with other psychic mediums where we took a few minutes every day of the workshop to practice with the other students. One person who was reading my aura told me about this “duality” in my personality, and how I often feel that most of the people in my life only know one half of me.
I created this painting in 2018, so at the time that I created this video in 2021, nearly three years have passed. Wow! No one else had ever recognized this about me before, and when I created this painting and gave it its name, no one truly understood it. Possibly I didn’t even fully understand it yet. This is why I love being part of the psychic mediumship community. We know each other even when we have never met before.
©August 2018, Francesca Bandino, Dual Complexity. Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas, 40x30x.8 inches.
Always With Me
A poem I wrote inspired by my painting of the same name.
This one is about finding joy again.
A poem I wrote, inspired by my painting of the same name.
©Jan 2020, Francesca Bandino, Always With Me. Acrylic on Gallery Wrapped Canvas, 24x24x1.5 inches.
Always With Me
Original poem by Francesca Bandino
After such heartache
I find joy again
There is hope
All will be alright
This will be
My happy place once more
Yes, I can
Embrace the joy
So one day
Happiness will return
And the breaks in my heart
Will be stitched up
By new memories
While also remembering
The old memories
The good memories
You will always be
On my mind
In my heart
And by my side
I will leave
My heartache behind
Getting back to my happy place
In the summer I enjoy painting outdoors, but in the winter I paint from photographs that I’ve taken during my travels. I travel to California often and I started taking pictures of bird of paradise flowers on one of my trips to Los Angeles. The following Spring I started painting from those photographs.
The Bird of Paradise Flower series was my first body of work based on the study of a single subject matter. Although the first one I painted was very simple, the more paintings I created, the more details I explored.
In the summer I enjoy painting outdoors, but in the winter I paint from photographs that I’ve taken during my travels. I travel to California often and I started taking pictures of bird of paradise flowers on one of my trips to Los Angeles. The following Spring I started painting from those photographs.
©May2017, Francesca Bandino, Bird of Paradise Blue. Acrylic on Canvas, 10x10x1.5 inches
The Bird of Paradise Flower series was my first body of work based on the study of a single subject matter. Although the first one I painted was very simple, the more paintings I created, the more details I explored. I also found myself experimenting with backgrounds and color choices. In the first part of the series I completed 9 bird of paradise flower paintings. Then I had other ideas percolating in my head and I moved onto other projects.
The following winter I had some issues in my studio including flooding (don’t worry, nothing was ruined). I took this as an opportunity to move into a shared studio space with other artists. I had been working on my own for a long time, so it was nice to be surrounded by creatives. However, the artist side of my brain didn’t seem to agree with the social part of it.
For the first month I found myself making less than interesting work. I experimented with a few subject matters, but everything seemed completely out of my style. Even the flower paintings I made were not up to par with my other flower paintings. I was creatively lost. I was having a hard time connecting to my work in this new space.
A Bright Soul in progress on my easel
In my despair I printed out the pictures I had taken of the bird of paradise flowers in Los Angeles. I was hesitant to start. What if I had forgotten how to paint these majestic flowers? What if they didn’t look like the ones I had previously made?
However, I did what I usually do. I pushed my fears aside for the love of painting. I slowly started to feel myself sink into my happy place. My art companions were amazed at what I was creating. This was working. I wasn’t trying to create something unique or meaningful. I was simply creating a subject that speaks to me with colors that I love. I had shut out everything else around me and created something beautiful. The painting was A Bright Soul. I was creating something familiar but in a new way. It gave me the momentum to make paintings that I loved again.
“Radiant Plenitude” is my solo exhibition of bright and bold paintings which was on display at the Ocean City Arts Center in March 2019. Among the paintings in the collection is the Bird of Paradise Flower series. Each piece and each body of work carries its own significance. When I look at the Bird of Paradise Flower paintings I’m reminded of courage, comfort and the happiness they bring.
From left to right: Blue Flight, Orange Rose, Bird of Paradise Blue, Voluptuous Blues, Dual Complexity
Featured posts:
