Winter is an etching, spring a watercolor, summer an oil painting and autumn a mosaic of them all. - Stanley Horowitz

One of the other projects we were asked to do was The Four Seasons. I had a great idea in mind, when we were then told that it should be a photo-collage. So, naturally, I did both. 

The first one is the first idea. I mounted all four paintings onto a canvas board. I was thinking about how time is cyclical, and so are the seasons. So, while I tried to make all four be paintings that could stand alone, I still wanted to mount them in such a way as to be reminiscent of a clock. At the top, Spring, then to the right, Summer, then to the bottom Fall, and finally to the left Winter. Each one holds elements of the season before and after, as there is a natural blending in the seasons. I do wish the plaster textures showed a bit more.

After that, I kept the clock in mind when doing the photo collage versions of the seasons. Since we were asked to use photos of people, I decided to make it "The Four Seasons of My Emotions", and used my own photo. I used the same photo for all four, distorting and altering the picture for my needs. I placed my photo in the appropriate position of the clock, keeping that these going.

So, First, we have Spring - Hope. I wanted to give the feeling of growth, so I splashed upward, and without realizing, made it quite flower-like. I did not alter the photo for this first one, as at the time that photo was taken, I was in a place in my life where I had a lot of hope. I then used colours that I felt were appropriate for Spring.

Next, we have Summer - Joy. Here I intentionally suggested a flower, and altered the photo to bring bright glowing colour to the background and myself. When I am in joy, I think of myself as "glowing", so it seemed appropriate. The photo is to the right, as if it were in the same place as the number 3 on a clock. I used colours that I felt were appropriate for Summer - lots of bright, flowery colours.

Next up is Fall - Doubt. Why doubt? Well, doubt is the opposite of hope, as fall is the opposite of Spring. I faded the picture of myself and used Photoshop to get the "negative" of it, because doubt is negative, and we fade away when we are in doubt. The photo is in the same position as the number 6 on the clock. I used colours that I felt were appropriate for Fall, reminiscent of the foliage at that time of year.

Then there is Winter - Despair. Again, the opposite of Joy, as Winter is the opposite of Summer. Here I really distorted the photo, turning the smile into a grimace of pain. I used wintery colours, and build up the plaster to create snow-like drifts. My picture is in the same position as the number 9 on the clock.

When I first presented these, a number of people said, "Wow, you really hate winter, don't you?"

While I admit to being a spring and summer girl, I really don't hate winter or fall all that much. I was really just thinking in opposites. The winters here in Toronto are not anywhere near as bad as they are in Montreal. So, ever since I moved here, I no longer cringe at the thought of winter.