My 2020 Project! (Even thought 2020 is almost halfway through!) I have been painting for over 20 years. My art has changed and evolved over the past two decades. I thought it might be fun to revisit earlier works and see how I would interpret them today. My goal for Project 2020 is look at 20 pieces of art that I created over the past 20 years and figure out what worked and what didn’t and then redo them.

The first piece in this series is The Magical Carousel. The original painting is a 16″ x 20″ canvas and it sold at an art show in my hometown of Mount Olive, NC. (Very soon after I finished it… which is awesome!) It featured four young riders on this enchanted carousel at night, under a swirly sky full of stars.

Here is a detail from the original but you can see most of it…

It has been wonderful to revisit these fun characters as they enjoy riding on a magical carousel at night. With the opportunity to do it again I added a fifth rider to the group and painted them all on a larger 24″ x 36″ canvas.

What is it about carousels that even as an adult fascinate me? They are true works of art with a foot in the present and past. They inspire imagination for their riders. Whether in stories like Something Wicked this Way Comes or even Mary Poppins carousels seem to have the ability to transport people magically even if only for a few unforgettable moments.

My hope for this picture is that it brings up happy memories of carousels and the joy of fun adventures both real and imaginary.