Laos

Last year my son and his wife visited Laos and were amazed at the beauty of the country. He shared multiple photos of their adventures which gave me the opportunity to pull one as a resource for a new paint project. I didn’t think I could manage detailing a zip ride or a visit with an elephant in the jungle, so I chose the one on the left, above.

When it comes to travel photos, not very many of them end up on the wall. I’ve tried a few, but it just doesn’t have a lot of impact. More often they end up as screen savers or electronic wallpaper, but this trip seemed like it was more special. I didn’t tell him I was working on anything, because I wanted it to be a surprise.

I got to work choosing colors and used the source material for a while, before putting it away and finishing. It’s not an exact replica, which I wasn’t trying for, but wanted something close. Something to capture a memory.

I’ll try to pick up frames as I go, and I’m always on the lookout for something that looks great but doesn’t break the bank. Once I found a nice frame for it, I packaged it up and shipped it across the country, keeping my fingers crossed that it would arrive intact. He sent me a text when he opened the box, saying he loved it. Later, he and his wife called, and she shared her surprise as well.

That made me happy. Worth it.