Esta Vida Me Encanta, Oil on Gallery Canvas, 36x48 inches

I began the painting as a still life; the snake plant in my studio served as inspiration from two different angles; I painted the background from memories of the Gatineau hills that I see most days and my travel experiences abroad. After I had painted the foreground and the hills, I called each of my children separately into my studio, one after the other. I asked, “What do you think, what should I paint– water or grass between the pots?” Both voted for water. I accepted their recommendations. I very rarely ask for input about subject matter. I kept saying that the pots I had painted looked Mexican (the original pots were unlike the version I had made).  

The painting was completed about two weeks before my niece, Chloe, passed away at a beach in Mexico. She had been travelling the world for a couple of years and I had no idea that she had been residing in Mexico.