Paperwhite Vigil (Paperwhite Narcissus II)

About this work

Every winter I force paperwhite bulbs in a glass on the windowsill. For weeks they look like nothing at all, while the roots do the real work in the dark water. I painted these in December as the first flowers opened, when the low light came through the glass and caught every white thread of root. I loved painting the roots and the exquisite attention they required. They're the part of the bulb nobody looks at, and in that low December light they were where the sacred showed itself, every pale thread lit inside the glass while the flowers above were still opening. I kept the wall and the draped linen quiet and brown so your gaze drifts down from the petals and comes to rest on the roots, and I glazed the glass one thin layer at a time until it held what looks like real water. On your wall it holds that doorway open for you to step through whenever your heart longs for stillness, a reminder through the darkest months that something is always growing towards the light. It arrives with a certificate documenting how it was made, care notes and a personal letter about what I was reaching for. If you'd like to see it in person, my studio door is open.

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