(Seat and back were sanded; gesso was applied to area to be painted; at least two coats of acrylic paint were used; then an isolation coat; finally, three coats of archival satin varnish. All products were manufactured by Golden Acrylics.)
A child's golden oak chair was delivered; I waited for it to tell me what it wanted to be. It said "I'm already beautiful and would like to be a footstool."
All my paintings have been on canvas or panels--a chair seat calls for a different perspective. I considered a painting of a robin's nest, or birds looking down at a parking lot (deciding which car to bomb), or a cup of spilled coffee. I wanted the beauty of the wood to show so I chose a napkin with cut-work; I don't have one so I made it up. What to put on the napkin--fruit, but fruit is boring. I saw a watermelon at the produce stand--not a seedless one but one with black seeds--like the ones from childhood.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiOZ0ZRadKwc-OkFMOrDGSznONOhqQrSqbZkIidAT8NUA666DMPsm8PsAzovKUzL9dYvG31sqiahRt8ePucfvg5pn8Tb6zC0Vc08Z2qGBs-Xl4yl4-oEyAD36HYvCNDL2wBd79jHk1e1JQ/s200/chair4.jpg)
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I remembered summer Saturday nights as a child. Friends gathered at our country store--ten to twelve children. We played hide-and-seek, red rover, and jumped rope. A parent would bring out a home-grown watermelon and a large butcher knife. One well-placed whack of the knife cut three-quarters through the watermelon; then it was broken in half. The same method was used for each slice. We stood and ate our slices, bent over to keep drips
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEie1cPUCoHcVvUg90YXTRcDmLqGwYH5CTFhCXeGNDpxZmI6TFPOTwO-KIf3STg02HqqWwY0D4NO8D3byov7DJfg3-xrE_3YzJ4E_5ZSdVqzNugc3Rr1OS6rjxPaEn-07X6EUzCESO2evKI/s200/chair6.jpg)
I don't think the bugs looked like these--I spent a lot of time researching flies. I know that they have large eyes and six legs. I could not determine whether their wings go up and down or back and forth. I guess these are Farber flies.
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Working conditions were not ideal; I improvised. The chair fit perfectly over my trash can--just the right height.