Ever since I was a kid, I was always referred to as a sunflower. Sunflowers are bright and full of happiness. Once I got older I was called a tall sunflower because I am a tall person. Sunflowers to me represent positivity and strength.Â
If I had to describe sunflowers by using each letter of the name it would be. S for strong, U for unity, N for notorious, F for far, L for lovely, O for optimistic, W for wonderful, E for exciting, R for rising, and S for strength.Â
As an artist I am inspired by sunflowers in most of my works. I have used sunflowers to express in self portraits, have generally painted sunflowers with watercolor and acrylic mediums, and have made large sunflowers out of paper. The sunflower I made out of paper was first painted with acrylic then I cut it out and made a tall sunflower. The sunflower I gave to a former classmate of mine for her classroom. For my project in Painting Studio, I am using inspiration by the artist Will Cotton. Will Cotton was the artist who made Katy Perry’s music video, “California Girls”, happen.He paints female figures and adds baked goods and candy to the pieces. For my piece I am painting a female figure and putting her in a sunflower field and adding sunflowers to her.Â
By seeing pictures of a sunflower maze back near my hometown in the poconos, it had me missing sunflowers. I had just recently been to a sunflower field at a family orchard, Grim’s Orchard, which is not too far away from Kutztown University. I went with a close friend of mine from school. It was well needed because I have been stressed out with school and with COVID-19, like I am sure many of us are. Walking through the field gave me smiles from ear to ear. We took nonstop pictures that day. The two of us basically had a photo shoot.Â
If you are having a stressful week, in need for some self care, try heading to a place you know will make you smile. Go to your favorite restaurant, go see your favorite flower, think about your favorite things, and do what you need to do to get a smile on your face.