Tess Sprenkeling
The decline of life
My painting is mainly based on the photo I took during a drawing excursion to the VisKringloop, where I photographed a beautiful shore flower and a bee. I always enjoy walking through an environment that is richly surrounded by flowers and plants. That is one of the reasons why I decided to paint this shore flower.
In addition, the painting also reminded me of a theory I once came up with. My self-invented theory is called "the flower theory," in which I argue that (introverted) people are like flowers. In order for a small, tiny plant to bloom, it needs love and attention. In this case, love naturally means love for flowers and nature, and attention means proper care for the plant. When we apply this concept to people, I have noticed, especially in myself, that it largely corresponds to bonds between people. If an (mainly introverted) person receives sufficient attention, affection, and love from another person, they will gradually open up to that person and, as it were, blossom like a flower. In my painting, the flower represents the process of a person opening up to someone else, and the bee symbolizes the person who gives the other person attention, affection, and love through their devotion and affection. This is symbolized by the bee touching the flower.
