She raised an eyebrow. “Is that all you think about? Money and women.”
“It was a joke. I’m really happy for you.”
She smiled, “Thanks. This art exhibition is the biggest I’ve ever been featured in. A number of prominent figures in the art community are going to attend. So I’m very excited. I found out this morning and I got started right away. That’s why I called that sexy young model here at the last minute.”
“I’ve noticed. You usually don’t paint women my age. You usually paint older women, no offense. So that was kind of surprising to me when I saw her.”
She nodded. “With all the space I’m getting for this years art exhibit, I’ve decided to expand my boundaries. I want to explore diversity. So I’ll be painting everyone from college students, to senior citizens, and people from different ethnic backgrounds. I’m very excited about it.”
“I can tell. You look excited. It’s great seeing you like this. I know you’ll get the recognition you deserve.”
My mother gave me a skeptical look, as if she was wondering if I was being sarcastic or not. When she determined that I was being sincere, she gave me a big hug, even with all the paint on her clothes.
“You’re too sweet,” she replied. “Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to wash up.”
***
The next few months I saw my mother working harder than usual. She taught a few classes during the day, and she continued selling custom made artwork, or selling her artwork online. She did things the way they were always done.
But whenever she found a new model, she would become excited, and it would be her main priority. I would help her set up the room and help arrange her painting supplies. When she was done, I would help her clean everything. Unfortunately, she never let me watch her paint anyone in the nude. She said I would be distracting to her, but I think the real reason was that she didn’t want me drooling over some of the beautiful naked women that showed up.
She also meant what she said about wanting to paint a diverse crowd. The women that posed for my mother were of various age ranges, and different ethnic backgrounds. Some of the models were pale white, others were brown or black.
Even though I never got to watch my mother paint, she didn’t mind when I saw the finished product of her painting. She always asked for my opinion, and I always told her the truth. Her nude portraits were amazing. They captured the beauty and feelings of the woman who were painted. There was an incredible amount of detail to their bodies, and you could see the emotions painted in their eyes. I could understand why mom’s portraits were always her bestsellers.
After she had enough female models, my mother focused on painting men. Most of the male models were older, and of different ethnic backgrounds. But like she said, she wanted people of all age ranges.
*** POSING FOR MOM’S PORTRAIT ***
It was a Saturday morning. I arranged the paint and art supplies for my mother. It was the last nude painting she planned on doing before the art exhibition, which was only a week away. I heard my mother talking on the phone in the other room. I didn’t pay much attention to what she was saying, but I could tell she was talking to the model based on some of the words she used.