Artwork of Debra Lee Blog

The River of Life

This painting is the sixth in the African series and is the most complicated to date.

Begun as an abstract acrylic painting on illustration board two years ago, it has evolved intuitively into a very detailed, symbolic painting.

The title “River of Life” is symbolic of the River Nile, which runs through Africa. Legend has it that all of life began at the headwaters of the Nile. It is the longest river in the world and the three main rivers in Africa flow into it.

The three blue areas of the painting symbolize the three rivers and form the cruciform composition with the convergence of the Cheetah’s face becoming the focal point from which the rest of the painting is read. Vaguely noticing the white elephant in the right hand corner which is part of the Cheetah’s face then following down into the Giraffe’s head and over to the bottom left your eye is led through the painting clockwise then upwards from the Rhino to the Leopard.

From a distance you will notice the abstract painting and interesting primary colors and get drawn in by the larger images and as you get closer you will notice more images and collaged maps and even closer examination will reveal very small collage pieces and hand painted images. Your eye flows through the painting as the River Nile flows through Africa.