The Broken Violin String

The broken violin string is a metaphor for healing the broken pieces that exist within our own lives. The series was inspired by a real event that took place one time when I was attending a concert by the LA Phil at Disney Hall in downtown Los Angeles. The soloist, Carrie Dennis, actually had the string of her viola break right in the middle of a performance. She instantly switched instruments with the fellow behind her so she could continue playing the piece. He in turn repaired the instrument.

This suite of watercolors also references to meditation which I do at Saint Monica’s with Jim Finley and at the New Camaldolese Hermitage in Big Sur. The flight of stairs in from a series I did of my grandmother’s house in Pittsburgh that I did in 1980-81. My grandmother was the oldest person I ever knew. She was born in 1880 or so. We are always walking up the stairs of our lives.