I'm currently working on an oil painting of Hylas among water lilies.
I paint the way I was taught—classical, Neo-Baroque, with a lot of attention to the figure, light, and atmosphere. I love the subject and I genuinely enjoy the process, so I know the painting will find its way to completion.
But the closer I get to the finish line, the more I start asking myself questions. Should I stay fully committed to that language? Or should I introduce something unexpected—something abstract, something that belongs more to the present?
Sometimes I wonder whether the question is artistic, or whether it's really about demand and relevance.
Curious if other artists here ever find themselves caught between what they love making and what they think the world wants to see.
(Detail from a work in progress: Hylas' back and water lilies.)












