A super high energy concert, Voodoo Threauxdown, brought four NOLA bands to the stage with several guest artists. Watching Cyril Neville was like watching a master conductor effortlessly leading the band while he sang. Their performance was extraordinary. The energy exchanged between these bands and the audience was an incredible thing to be part of.

"Leading the Way" is experimental for me by presenting me the challenge of how to represent distant instruments with just a glint of color and to include greater layering than my typical paintings. Using some acrylic mediums allowed me to establish a base with texture and some resistive characteristics before working with watercolor on top of that base. Capturing the smoky effect on stage required some careful control of water to accomplish the look I hoped for.

I decided to include some heads of the audience since it is who the musicians are there for. The energy the musicians make to deliver their best each time is incredible and manipulating the paint to create that type of energy was crucial to this piece.

"Leading the Way" is one of my paintings included in "Portraits of Life: An Ekphrastic Anthology" with poems written by local artists. The book is the rsult of an event sponsored by the Ellicott City Poetry and Prose non-profit organization in conjunction with an exhibition I had with my friend Elaine Weiner-Reed at the Baltimore County Arts Guild (BCAG) Clubhouse Gallery.

Contact April if interested in purchasing this piece.