This series was born out of a sense of frustration.  Years ago i fell in love with the iconic graphic designs of old authentic antique games – and particularly with the Parcheesi design with all of its wonderful variations.  I immediately found that buying a 19th century board to hang on my wall to admire was out of the question, as they are extremely hard to find and when found, sell for a lot of money.

What I love about Parcheesi is that the whole game is a metaphoric journey similar to life.  The ultimate goal is to work one’s way to the end point: actually, the center square in the middle of the board.  This place has always been portrayed as a “safe” place – where no other player could bump you back to the beginning to start all over again.  In my mind that square on the board became synonymous with every kind of sanctuary i could imagine.  Interestingly, most of the 19th century boards named that place “home.”  The early boards, of course, were painted by individuals – long before Milton Bradley came along.

As an artist, all the “safe” places i could imagine became possibilities for painterly expression.  Physical safety, as well as psychological well-being was the obvious states to define in the center square.  Even small accomplishments, such as a home run, seemed to be a fun thing to strive for.  Happiness?  Why not call upon the bluebird?  And if our planet were cooling instead of heating up, wouldn’t that be a great thing?

By using my metaphor, i found i could reinterpret the relatively standard Parcheesi board, and use it to express new ideas, always with the sense that the best place to be is the safe place.