Grandpa’s Compass, 2025

8x10 inches with a one inch border watercolor painting on paper

The compass is an amazing mechanism of simplicity. The needle points to magnet north and orients the user in their navigation. The compass has many metaphors in my life. Family, education, religion and mentors throughout my life have guided me. Some of those navigation tools have led me in different directions, all of them have delivered me to to important destinations. This compass belonged to my grandfather, who loved Scouting and taught me orienteering with this compass.

The compass is oriented to the top of the the painting which is traditionally north on a map. The flat background directs the viewers eyes to the center of the composition. The intensity of the yellow in the painting signifies the optimism I have in traveling through the valleys and peaks of my life journey.

Grandpa’s Compass, 2025

$250