34 x 32 inches
Oil on linen
White Oak Float frame

I've always been intrigued by the illustrations, known as illuminations, in medieval manuscripts. The level of detail is crazy, especially knowing that these little books were made by hand for a single person, often a woman, to keep in her pocket.  

These manuscripts are called Books of Hours in English. The French called the most beautiful ones Belles Heures. Beautiful hours. “Reciting the hours” meant reading one of the devotions out loud every hour throughout the day in order to establish a closer connection to God.

In this painting I wanted to explore the particular sensation of time that came with mothering. Hour after hour, being tethered to your own magical creation. Beautiful hours. Endless hours.

I modified this painting a dozen times over two and a half years, swapping versions of my children in and out until it came down to just this one. A child in a rocking chair. 

When I was nearly done, I held the painting up to the window to mark the edges for stretching. The light passed through the thinner passages of paint, so from the front it appeared that those sections glowed. I spent the next few weeks trying to recreate that effect in oil paint.

Ultimately, a Book of Hours was a personal object, made by hand for one reader. I think about that with painting too. The hours that go into making something by hand, and how it ends up living in one person's home, becoming part of their daily life.