With the gilding and gesso ready, today was a gilding day. In designing the star, I purposefully worked toward creating some subtle effects. It was to this end that I slightly angled the star’s rays so that the light would reflect off the gold differently as the viewer (or the sun) moved. To heighten the effect, I also only burnished one side of the ray. So, in the daytime, the burnished side will shine but in the evening, the deaden side will glow.
Subtleties may not make artwork “pop” in the way that a lot of modern art tries to by employing shock, etc. but I think when a work is commissioned for an individual it’s important that add these layers. If that person is going to look at the same piece within their home for the next 20 years, I feel I need to offer nuances which they can notice over time. Hopefully the piece makes a good first impression, but I’ve always believed that getting to know something over time is more important, and for that discovery to be interesting, a certain depth needs to be cultivated.