29” x 35”
Copper oxide handmade from dad’s copper wire, hydraulic manuals, and acrylic paint on wood panel.
Frame is upgraded to a 2", wider maple wood.
 
My mom fell for Dad before she was old enough to date him. He said she was too young, as she was 4 years younger than him, and they were teenagers. They went their separate ways, but inevitably they got back together, and then married when my mom was 19, in 1967.

When Dad passed, we had a conversation. Lying in bed, crying, I thought to him “I just wish I could talk to you.”
Of course, I could hear his voice in my head “But, you ARE talking to me.”
I continued, “but like, I wish you could answer.”
Immediately I knew, and his reply was “Leslie, I AM talking to you.”
 
So began the dialogue which brought about this painting and eventually the rest of this exhibit.
I walked into one of our storage sheds, still full of Dad’s saved things for projects he had accumulated over the past 40+ years. Out loud, I asked “Where should I start, what should I use in here, Dad?”
 
I looked in the direction of his many hydraulic manuals and started to dig them out. They were greasy, some moldy, and not really useful anymore with the invention of the internet. I started by ripping up pages and making paper, then sorted out the yellow pages which I used to make the petals in their sunflower crowns, adorning them like they were the prince and princess of their time.

The wall colour was matched by copper ink I made from salvaged wire from my dad’s shop. As the vinegar evaporates, I am left with a thick teal paste I used to paint.