Post 13 – Painting with Seth
The day of painting with Seth was finally here! The plan was to spend an afternoon painting in his studio.
Arrived at his house, I followed Seth into the basement. He told me his wife was away for the afternoon so there would be no distractions.
The main basement had a tv with a large L-shaped sofa and a television. Four smaller rooms branched off the main room: the laundry room, bathroom, guest bedroom, and painting studio. My first (and lasting) impression of Seth’s studio was not great. It was a complete mess! There was dust and dirt everywhere, and the size of room was very small; hardly enough space for two people to paint comfortably. Two counters were nailed firmly to the wall and painting supplies covered the entire surface.
It was completely disorganized!
Next to the door was a metal shelving unit, which supported canvases, rags and drop sheets. No easels were in sight. It was unclear where we were going to paint. On the floor?
Apparently, yes. Already set up on half the surface of the floor lay one of Seth’s paintings.
Before I could say something about his unusual setup, he grabbed a drop sheet from the shelf and placed it on the floor next to his workspace.
“Here you go…you can set up next to me!” He said gleaming with excitement.
“Uhm, I usually paint standing or sitting. Do you have an easel?” I asked glancing around the room.
I felt slightly insulted by the fact that he didn’t clean his studio before receiving me! I thought of my own studio, with everything well organized, clean and bright. My studio was so well lit, I could easily grow a small garden! Okay, not everyone can be organized, but surely, he knew how to clean?
“Oh! Sorry! I don’t have an easel. Do you want to paint on the counter?” he asked.
He quickly started clearing one of the counters. I stood watching with my canvas in one hand and my painting supplies in the other. I didn’t know where to put my things, it was so cramped!
Maybe this was a bad idea!
I felt uncomfortable in this room and not sure that I could accomplish anything creative.
After a good twenty minutes, I was almost set up. I took over clearing the surface of the counter as Seth fetched a desk lamp and clean rags. When we finally got down to painting I felt totally uninspired. The counter space was limited and I was facing an unfinished basement wall. I never thought of environment to be an important factor to the painting process, but clearly it was!
Thirty minutes into our painting session, I didn’t create much. I was more interested in Seth’s painting. He was fully engaged in the process. Every so often, he asked my opinion on form and design choices.
“Hey, why don’t you come over and have a look at it from this perspective,” he said. He stood up and gestured for me to sit.
I took his spot, kneeling on the floor. He stood behind me. I critiqued his artwork, giving him positive feedback and areas where he could improve.
He then positioned himself in a low squat behind me, looking at his painting, over my shoulder.
“What do you think of the top right-hand corner? You think it needs more yellow?” He lengthened his arm past my shoulder, pointing at the area.
“Yeah maybe…” I replied without much thought, distracted by his close proximity.
Returning his arm by his side, he gently leaned into my back with his chest.
“Hmm.” He said. “Something is missing…”
With his chest at my back, I could feel his warm breath on the side of my neck. Was he really contemplating on next steps for his painting, or was he making a pass at me? I wasn’t sure what to think, or what to do! I felt slightly uncomfortable, but at the same time, aroused.
This is not good!
It was inappropriate to be so close, but it felt good! I didn’t move. He stayed leaning into me for a while, looking over my shoulder, not saying a word. His chest was firm and his shoulders, broad. With each breath I felt his chest expand across my back and the side of my neck tickle. In that moment I felt desire rush into my body. I hadn’t felt such passion in a long time! I thought the feeling had escaped me forever due to my presumably low libido issue. Yet, there I was, experiencing something fantastic that I shouldn’t be feeling for another man. What was I to do?