This little alla prima still life was painted from life with an impromptu selection of objects that I keep in my studio. It was only later that a deeper meaning bubbled up from my subconscious. Hang on, we’re going deep now! This apple was to be my afternoon snack but was conscripted for service in my attempt to paint/draw something regularly without over-planning. The old phrase of ‘An apple a day keeps the doctor away’ came to mind. A painting a day is the adage that many artists live by and I have never come close to that!’ An apple a day’ was a common phrase used by many parents to encourage healthy eating in children. My mother was no exception and so it seems like a strange coincidence that I reached up on a shelf and grabbed this old black book to help elevate the subject to a more attractive vantage point. It is in fact my mother’s war diary–kept faithfully for the years that my dad was overseas during WWII. Her daily entries were brief descriptions of weather, meals made and eaten, parcels sent overseas, visitors, illnesses, etc…Never more than a few lines, they nonetheless give testament to toughing it out and living life with quiet acceptance and duty and self-discipline. I feel like such a wuss by comparison. Thanks mom for the life lesson