Bloomed Anyway

Painting the first layers of this piece was chefs kiss for me. Watering down my acrylics into almost nothing, blending soft washes - it was therapy. My soul needed it, because in real life everything was out of sorts.

Then came the florals. Exactly where I wanted to go, but like always... I struggled with knowing when to stop. I kept adding, layering, losing track of the original idea until all I saw was chaos. On a normal day i'd have scrapped it - but canvases cost a fortune, and I made myself sit in the discomfort instead. Weeks went by, staring at the ugly in-between, trying to figure out my next move. 

On the day I felt the flattest version of myself, I came back to this canvas. I washed some florals away, softened the chaos, and for the first time in my life my ADHD brain actually let go. That moment was huge for me. 

I'll be honest, I felt embarrassed of a failure, embarrassed sitting with a canvas that felt ruined. But when I put those emotions into words, I realised this painting was my growth in disguise.

Eventually I grabbed the palette knives. Layer after layer, the texture built up like scar tissue until the spark finally came back. When I showed my husband, Aaron - he loved it (but he loves everything I do, bless). But then my savage truth bombing 10-year-old lit up when he saw it too, and that was when I believed it myself.

I called her Bloomed Anyway because that's what she did - through failed starts, chaos, doubt, spirals, and all the layers I thought had wrecked it. She bloomed Anyway!


Whats the Specs?
This piece is 120x90cm, framed in flooded gum. 

What did I watch while creating this?
I love to binge a TV series while painting, and this piece was created on my all-time favourite - One Tree Hill. i'm a Brooke Davis fan forever. 

How many hours did this take me? 
If we add up the breaks I took in between this piece because of my self-doubt then 5 weeks, but actual palette knife to canvas, this piece took me 104 hours. 

Will this be offered as a Print? 
YES! I only pick 1-2 pieces from every collection to be available in print, and this is one of them! I love this piece, and the self-discovery I have learnt whilst creating it - I hope you do too. 

x Brooke