Transcend

This painting is the first of 3 in the series for Art That Blows 2019.

transcend:
to rise above or go beyond; overpass; exceed.

It’s hard to think about issues at home or in school when you’re learning scales or trying to play something by ear. It’s empowering to see progress, to watch a new skill develop, especially when you’re watching that unfold with other kids in a band context. In this way Band of Angels helps kids to transcend their circumstances, giving them confidence in their own abilities, and a new identity as a musician. This is priceless.

I’d originally planned to incorporate xylophone keys into this painting (think Super Mario platform jumping). The consensus, from a highly scientific process of showing photos to random people, was that most preferred it without the xylophone keys, so I decided to leave those off.

This painting also has the distinguished honor of being the most difficult to sign.