Concentration

Dificien-C

I often find myself having a cup of orange juice at the dinner table. Having taken a European history class last year and learning about the millions of sailors who died during the Age of Exploration because of scurvy—severe vitamin C deficiency—it was surprising to me that, for all the grandeur of sailships, human travel and progress was limited by the most fundamental disease that could have been cured, perhaps oversimplified, by this drink at my table.

Building off this theme, I envisioned a piece that juxtaposed a ship with a floating ice-burg-like cloud of fruits to illustrate the glorious prospect of adventure and sailing that lay for hundreds of years at the whim and mercy of a few fruits that seem, in modern-day, so common and plain.

In the context of my concentration, this piece illustrates that, given the right circumstances, even the most mundane things can become desperate necessities. For someone stranded amid a vast desert, a cup of water is worth a million dollars; if not for a global pandemic, who knew toilet paper could be so valuable; for sailors traversing the tremulous ocean, an orange can be the difference between life and death.

There is a curious duality in human nature. We crave adventure and new experiences, yet only when we face adversity and discomfort do we realize the importance and beauty of everyday things that we have for so long taken for granted.

I don’t actually have a lot of experience with acrylic painting, so working through this piece was quite the learning experience. I learned a lot about colour theory and got a good feel for the medium in general.

For the countless hours I spent before my canvas, I actually really enjoyed painting the fruits for all their vibrant colours and intricate details. A conscious choice I made was to only include fruits with relatively high vitamin C content, so although there was a bit of repetition, it helped me hone my skills.

The ocean and boat, however, were a different story. I really did not like how they turned out. Initially, I pictured a grand sailing ship that would have contrasted the simple forms of the fruits, but considering my time restraints and given that I had already spent so much time on the piece, I decided to settle for a smaller boat. Although the boat turned out to look like a boat, I think it didn’t hold up to the striking vision I first had.

The bigger problem, however, was the waves. I didn’t know how to paint the ocean, and following an eight-minute YouTube tutorial yielded what’s now on the canvas. Honestly, I just feel as though both the colours and lines don’t match the overall style of the piece and don’t give off any reflective or even liquid qualities of the ocean.

Overall, however, I am still rather proud of my piece considering its larger size and entirely original composition. On the other hand, this was definitely a learning experience for much greater things to come!