I sold a large print (48"x32") the other day to a buyer in Canada. And the subject matter was strange. So was the composition. And even though I truly love the image, I was rather surprised that it sold.
Here you see a photograph of the entire sign. That’s not the one that sold.
Below it is a photograph of part of the sign. And this is the composition the buyer chose.
Are you interested in the thought process? Well, as I was driving along I saw an old run-down, abandoned motel. But the coolest part (for me) was the sign, rising high in the sky. So that’s what I concentrated on.
But why did I make the image I did? The one that the buyer chose? Because I “collect” photographs of arrows. Whenever I’m out and about, I’m attuned to arrows in one form or another. You can find them in graffiti, on signs, on billboards, sides of buildings, on doors, ships, and airplanes.
And because I’m subconsciously always aware of arrows, they encourage me to create some often quite weird compositions. And that’s what this is. I couldn’t isolate the arrows by themselves very easily, but I could isolate one, sort of. The bottom parts of the letters “E” and “L” echo the shape of the arrow and everything just sort of goes together.
A bonus, too, is that I always notice the color red. So for me, combining the bold white shapes of the arrow and the letters, on a brilliant red background, was sheer joy.
But it all probably would not have happened if I didn’t have a predilection for arrows. And this one became just one more in my quiver.
©Carol Leigh
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