"Developed from a cropped photo taken in China in 2007, but painted many years later when Linda and I were going through our trips outside of Africa for the Smithsonian. This is one of my favorite paintings, though one could argue that it might be framed in a different style. First of all, it has a lot of perspective, representing many layers of the field. And in some ways, this could represent the many levels of life and our minds that we inhabit.

Another aspect, which I had to work continuously, is the alteration between the rice fields and the soil. The contrast is striking. Even more important in my mind are the small human figures toiling away at the harvest. They are relatively insignificant against this natural world. There is no sky horizon here. These farmers are encased in their own world and cannot imagine what is outside of it. I think this says a lot about the rest of our lives, even though we might consider ourselves more worldly. I wiped the fact that they were different workers at different levels— again perhaps a metaphor for life. I struggled with some of the features, including the horses and making sure that the humans could be noted as small as they are."

Size: 24x36 inches