Rainier Paper Song - Oil painting 20(h)x30(w)cm - framed

Rainier Paper Song II
Oil on panel

In Rainier Paper Song II, Leone Tonkinson captures the joyful brightness of summer distilled into form and color. A handful of Rainier cherries tumble from a crumpled paper bag, their translucent skins glowing with the tender blush of yellow and red. Against the clear expanse of sky-blue background, they appear almost weightless — radiant notes in a visual melody of light and shadow.

As part of the Fruits of Light series, the painting speaks of abundance in its simplest expression: fruit gathered, carried, and released onto the table. The paper bag, its folds echoing the cherries’ curves, becomes a surprising companion — a humble vessel transformed into rhythm and texture, like an instrument lending harmony to a song.

Through her luminous brushwork, Tonkinson celebrates the fleeting perfection of the everyday. Rainier Paper Song II reminds us that joy often arrives unannounced — in the glow of fruit, the crinkle of paper, the gentle play of light across a summer afternoon.