Jill McGannon
Atlanta, Georgia

Realistic painting is in and of itself paradoxical. As the image is both a painting and its subject, whether landscape, still life, or figure. A good trompel "oeil painting" fools the eye, causing the viewer to simultaneously recognize the painting as a painting and that which is depicted in the painting. To me, the impulse to paint realistically is an uncomplicated emotional response to beauty. I find myself really connecting with the person or place I am painting. In painting people, my desire is to communicate who that person is and what I admire about them. I'm also interested in the way the light hits the form, and the colors reflected on that form. In painting landscape, I'm intrigued with the way color changes in the distance and the play of light on the forms. I am also trying to convey the beauty of a certain place, and the beauty of the diminishing landscape in general.

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