Fragrant Delight~ Balm For The Spirit

If you’re anything like me, you find it a challenge to keep a buoyant and clear mind in the face of constant negative news. I busily go through my day, trying to keep my focus positive, but the sights and sounds in my periphery subliminally seep into my consciousness.

Soothing oneself with beauty is a balm for the spirit. I've often sat in the Museum’s Impressionist gallery to drink in the color and the joie de vivre with which those artists painted. My mood brightens; I defy anyone to brood in the midst of Impressionist paintings.

It is this understanding of imagery’s power that calls many artists to create. The action of creation is, in itself supremely pleasurable but it is the wish to share this delight with others that is the true motivator. For many of us, filling the world with beauty is our service work, an attempt to change minds and lighten hearts.

The painting, Fragrant Delight, exudes abundance and joy. Rich turquoise contrasts vibrant pink and showcases lush garden roses. The intensity of the light causes crisp reflections and pink echoes to radiate from the exuberant blooms. Ripe peaches add golden notes, which augment the symphonic color scheme. A circular composition structures the feeling of wholeness; flowers and fruit, so freely given by Nature cultivate the sense of abundance. A contemporary mandala, Fragrant Delight is a visual antidote to a world rocked with turbulence, harshness, and scarcity.

Melody Phaneuf is a Boston Artist, working at Fenway Studios. Phaneuf is well known for her evocative still life and landscape paintings and has achieved significant acclaim for portraiture. She has exhibited at Galerie Herouet in Paris, The National Arts Club in New York City, and with Art du Monde, a traveling exposition in Japan. Phaneuf’s paintings are regularly displayed at the Guild of Boston Artists, 162 Newbury Street, Boston, MA.

Melody The Artist Home, founded with photographer and color specialist, Martha DiMeo showcases the artist’s original paintings on tumbled marble tile murals and coasters, fine art prints and note cards. Online ordering at MelodyTheArtist.com/shop

Fragrant Delight, by Melody Phaneuf, is a 36 x 34 oil painting. Gicleé reproductions on canvas and fine art tile coasters of Fragrant Delight are available at MelodyTheArtist.com/shop

Related~

• The Nature of Aesthetic Experience
• Role of Aesthetics in Our Environment
• Color Promotes Happiness

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Season's Greetings~A Focal Point With Spirit

Season’s Greetings, oil painting by Melody Phaneuf
Private Collection

“I want to inspire the spirit of Christmas year round.”

This was the declaration by the patron who was to purchase the painting, Season’s Greetings. Having just finished a substantial home addition, she was looking for a focal point for the new family room; something to blend with her beautiful furniture, yet make a statement in her new interior.

Season’s Greetings was painted with a child’s heart, a sense of awe from magically appearing gifts, of dreams come true. The expression is supported by an intermediate major key, which mesmerizes us with light emerging from darkness. The dazzling white rocking horse provides the light, reflected in the bell and gift-wrap. Contrasting color —warm reds and cool blue green—causes pupils to expand and contract, entrancing us with wonder. The key allows colors to be rich without harshness.

The theme of the painting, the dramatic lighting and captivating color were well suited to be the focal point of the new family room. The neutralized yellow wall color is in harmony with the tone of the bell and golden gift. The room’s large windows, perpendicular to the wall where the art is hung flood the room with illumination, without directly hitting the painting. Season’s Greetings hangs above an antique bookcase. The ensemble is a remarkable focal point in the room. I am honored that this painting was chosen to enhance such exquisite surroundings.

~Wishing you the spirit of Christmas. May it last year round.~


Open Edition Prints and Note Cards of Season's Greetings are available at MelodyTheArtist.com/shop

Melody Phaneuf is an award-winning artist known for her evocative still life allegories. Phaneuf's paintings have been exhibited at Galerie Herouet in Paris, The National Arts Club in New York City, and were included in a traveling exposition in Japan. She is a regular exhibitor at The Guild of Boston Artists, 162 Newbury Street, Boston, MA.

Further Reading~

• Christmas Stories
• Christmas Traditions
• Create a Focal Point in Any Room
• Decorate To Create Focal Points In Your Home