TSoT: Kalahari Popcorn H – Sweet Vanilla
- Pieter A. Pienaar
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
TSoT = The Story of Trees
Vanilla is a scent we associate with our mothers and grandmothers and a homely kitchen. There usually was a small bottle of vanilla essence that changed the mood of the baking process. Once the eggs and the sugar were creamed, a teaspoon of the essence was added to the mix, and the experience was elevated immediately. Unfortunately for the children, the essence is not sweet at all, but there was always the invitation to get closer to the “elixir” when you were offered the spoon or the bowl to deplete of any dough remnants.
As an adult I belonged to a church home cell near my townhouse and there I had the privilege of encountering a phenomenon, the vanilla poppy seed cake; the icing was pure white chocolate. I was not familiar with vanilla poppy seed cake, but it became another favourite in a split-second. If you are interested in baking this wonderful cake, well, here is a link: Vanilla Poppy Seed Cake - Annie's Noms. I have yet not baked a vanilla poppy seed cake myself, but if you are a baker, you can assess the validity of this recipe.
Did you know that vanilla comes from the orchid family and it is the second most expensive spice? The first place goes to saffron. If you don’t believe me, you should read its history: The History of Vanilla MUST Vanilla: Gourmet Vanilla for baking.
How can we forget vanilla ice cream? It is always a safe option which appeals to most people. Can we imagine a world without it? I think Lea Salonga will convince you that vanilla ice cream can mess with your emotions too and she is very vocal about it. Here you can listen to her: Lea Salonga Sings "Vanilla Ice Cream" | Broadway's Best 2020| Great Performances on PBS - YouTube. Where did this sought-after cool treat come from? Wikipedia can tell us more. Vanilla ice cream - Wikipedia
It appears as if vanilla as a spice or a scent has captured the human race to such an extent that we want to bathe with it and we want to apply it to our largest organ, namely the skin. I am sure you must be aware of all the wonderful vanilla perfumes available. If you are not so clued-up regarding perfumes and the finer things for the nose, I think you should watch the link provided to give you a quick overview. I hope it does not excite you too much. Keep the wallet closed. 50 VANILLA PERFUMES IN 5.5 MINUTES?! - YouTube
Let me introduce my artwork, Sweet Vanilla, which is the inspiration for this post. It is becoming a rather difficult task for me to discuss 10 very similar works in this popcorn series, and I wonder what prompted me to look critically at my own creations. It must be the author in me who wanted to declare that there will be a regular writer's challenge based on personal produce.
Nevertheless, let me not halt this self-inflicted blogging challenge by being too introspective.
At first glance I can see that the composition is fairly balanced and the tree trunk divides the canvas in two as it reaches from the bottom and fans out at the top. The top branches are clustered together, and both sides, almost have the same volume of finer twigs. It now appears to me that I succeeded in creating a simple work that gives the eye a rest; the horizon line which is located in the bottom quarter adds to the peaceful impression. Obviously, as mentioned before, in a previous blog, the pointillistic paint application does want to cause disruption with its embossed and repetitive nature, but the muted colour choice protects the visual unity.
I hope you have some ice cream in your fridge or you are near an Italian ice cream parlour. If you fancy someone, you may want to go spoil them with vanilla ice cream to claim their attention, referring to Lea Salonga’s song. Always remember there is Art in your heArt. Oh, I have just remembered a painting I made in the early 1990s where ice cream is a major feature. This work was part of my Blisseria group.
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