" Birthday carnation 80 x 110 cm tempera colors on whitened paper.

Using tempera colors and paper for the first time was an exciting experience for me. Because I wasn't familiar with the best way to process and prepare the paper, the portrait has rumpled in some areas. It was painted in October of 2019. That afternoon, I missed my class. I couldn't stop painting. That was my first experience holding several brushes at once. In the months leading up to the completion of this painting, my mother and I have talked regularly. The memories of a traumatic event prevented us from communicating for a while. I don't remember if I mentioned this painting to her. I sometimes wait until the right moment, or perhaps I was shy. 

The portraits are taken by my friend Leifur Wilberg Orrason. 

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Colors were everywhere. I have been thinking about this Painting for more than a decade since we took these women's pictures. Initially, I didn't envision it to come out like this. It was not what I imagined it would be at the start or end. However, after combining the photos, the result was positively stunning. In the same vein, I had previously sketched a few ideas but was not satisfied with them. The motive has been painted in oil more realistically already showing the uncanny character. My palette was mostly greens, blues, and dark tones. It took me two hours to complete. I was completely blinded by the process. Those are birthday flowers and red carnations. Leipzig was my home for my 19th birthday.

One morning, my mother came for a surprise visit. She pulled a garden carriage and stood in front of my house, yelling my name to wake my neighbors and eventually me. The red carnations in her big bouquet caught my eye as I peered out the window; she was giggling and I ran down the stairs smiling. She had a humorous look on her face as she said: Here are your birthday flowers.