Fruit Vendors is based on a photograph taken in Antigua, Guatemala. This painting is intended to capture part of everyday life in Guatemala. It was morning and these women were setting up their stand for the day. They were located near a church which was visited by tourists and locals and both appeared to be their clientele. In the background were buildings and people who were at a level above the vendors, that I felt would detract from the vendors and their fruit.
I started with a design that had very little in the background, but as the painting developed I decided I needed to have more to balance with the front of the painting. My first revision was to add some plants to the background on the left side. I placed them all at about the same height because I thought the umbrella should be the only item that went to the top of the painting. However as the painting progressed I felt the woman on the right was off by herself with only a few items of fruit in front of her. There was a large empty gap between the fruit and her that went up to the umbrella. So I decided to add a few plants on her side of the painting. This proved to be not enough. The top still felt quite empty and really needed something dark in the upper left quadrant of the painting.
I decided to research plants native to Guatemala. I found one called “Heliconia Wagneriana” that had dark stems, long leaves, and great blossoms that had the same reddish orange I used in several other place within the painting. These plants grow from 5 to 15 feet tall, so they were a good candidate to fill the space. I found a few different photographs of this plant then drew it to fill in the space that I thought would balance the design. I think the addition of this plant did the trick.
Arrives in 28” x 25” brushed silver frame with a white mat.