Tetrachromacy makes it all come clear

 

 

When I first saw these jumbled threads of a worn-out orange construction fence, I actually thought they were a new species of flowering pink vine.  Well, there are some with better eyesight whose gifts were ultimately helpful as I approached #3 in my series of  "East Side Storeys."  Here goes.

 

I love this beautiful house that I frequently pass on my neighbourhood walks.  The residents hang occasional flags and often display giant seasonal balloons – snowmen, jack-o-lanterns, what have you.

 

In my sketch notes, I've called it "House with cut-out porch."  It's the shape of the archways on front and side that are so delightful.

 

 

I decided that this time I'd aim for a little more spontaneity and avoid a meticulous preliminary grid.  As I began my layout with chalk, I saw it would be a trick to capture the cut-out on the side of the porch – and at the same time, the cooperative young model from a historic mail-order house that goes back almost a century before on-line ordering. 

 

 

Well:  Press on regardless.  As I began to apply colour, darks first, I saw that my invented vantage point was making for troubling perspective.

 

 

What's that handy self-critique that hits me about three hours into a painting? "What was I thinking?"  Because by this stage, all the lines, all the angles, all the overlaps and intersections had already doubled the time I usually spend to get to this point in a painting.  And after many  more hours, they were still not right!

 

 

If I'd planned more carefully at the outset,… Is it even worth completing that sentence?  I was where I was, and I decided to just keep going.  For one thing -- to review an early choice -- I'd realized there was a meaningless space between the side cut-out and the small window so I'd filled it with a hummingbird feeder.

 

That's it – Hummers to the rescue.!! After all, we know that they don't see the world like this:--

 

No, their vision has the special quality of tetrachromacy.   Some humans have this trait, too, but hummingbirds can also see colour on the UV spectrum.   So surely their super-vision will put aright any of this painting's flaws.  They could care less about perspective – and knowing that they see in their own perfect way, I've titled the painting "What the Hummingbirds Saw" (copyright 2025 – East Side Storeys Series).

 

 

During the weeks I was grinding away on this, I caught a Zoom lecture by phenomenal wildlife photographer Liron Gertsman.  It's worth flipping through his gallery, and if you're really intrigued by birds and photography, you could view one of his videos like this one  – "The Best Photo of My Career – A Bird and a  Solar Eclipse."

 

Having seen how he photographs rapid wing movement, I was tempted to place an oversized hummer right before the front steps.  But that would be a bit much, wouldn't it?

 

Spring is in the air

 

 

It's been the wettest autumn for us, the coldest January-February, but yes, spring is on its way.  In celebration, I'm featuring my newest fascination – air plants (Tillandsia) – thanks to a holiday gift from my friend L.  For verification that spring is at hand, my windowsill plants are bursting towards the sun –

 

And the largest of the succulents is positively crying, "LET ME OUT OF HERE!"

 

 

It's still raining a lot but when, occasionally, the sky clears at midday, the throngs pour into the street for dancing and acrobatics.

 

 

My wool cap is sick of being a winter cap and started playing funny games with my groceries….flinging itself around my entryway and hiding a bag of mini-potatoes for almost two days.

 

I'm breathing deeply and trying to take a fresh look at things, renewing my original plan to develop a series of "East Side Storeys."  Next up on my list was one of these two houses, about five blocks from where I live.

 

The bay window and the colour combination of the house on the right particularly enchant me.

 

So:  Away we go, with a couple of splashy little studies to play with a composition and then an underlayer in orange, the colour complement of the house's predominant blue.

 

 

Here's a very early planning stage, after I've corralled those sunshine street dancers.

 

 

 

At this point, I'd put in about a third of the many hours I would come to use – finding it a bit exhausting and confusing but well past the point of no return.

 

 

 

I usually build my tones and variations on 3-4 tube colours – this is called a "limited palette."  But I must have used a good 12, plus Payne's Grey, an almost-black….and an almost no-no.  Crazy – and so the logical title was, "Spring Fever" (East Side Storeys series, copyright 2025).

 

Do you know an architect or contractor who would love to know about this series?  Don't tell them…….!  There are just too many errors and irregularities.  (Well, there were no fewer than three recorded earthquakes during the weeks this painting was under way).  But it IS spring – officially next week.  Why not suggest that they forget their building projects and take a walk under the cherry blossoms?