Want

A cigarette in the ashtray. A blue mug. An Elmore Leonard novel, minus the cover. A porch somewhere, and whatever comes next.

Want is an original acrylic painting printed on Somerset Velvet Fine Art Paper — a 100% cotton rag, acid-free paper used by artists and printmakers since the 1700s. Archival and museum-quality, these prints are built to last well over 100 years without fading or deterioration.

Read the story behind this painting below.

Print size: 16x16 inches Paper: Somerset Velvet Fine Art Paper, 255 gsm Finish: Velvet matte Edition: Fine Art Print. 

Ships unframed.

Shipping: The artwork is custom printed to order. Please allow 2 weeks for delivery.

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When I wrote “Want” as a poem, it was seven stanzas long, but it wasn’t very good.

What I did have in my head, however, was the exact painting I wanted to paint to go with it, even if the poem was a bit raw and unfinished. 

So to set up the scene I’d paint, I went out to Goodwill and somehow found the blue mug I had in my mind, and after going to numerous thrift shops, luckily found the perfect vintage ashtray I pictured. (The book in the painting is an Elmore Leonard novel, minus the hardcover wrap.)

For some reason, I still have the pack of cigarettes. There are eighteen left inside after burning the two I used for the painting, if you know anyone who’d like them.

After a few months of going back and forth writing “Want” as a poem, I decided the painting that came from it was better than the poem itself. So I scrapped the poem. 

I did, however, save two stanzas from it that I think say most of what I wanted:

Old toys still packed in boxes

Framed pictures on the walls

The calendar’s two months behind

A dog to top them all

The dreams I had when I was young

My words tucked in a drawer

One day they’ll all be memories

But for now, I’m making more