ABOUT THE PIECE
"La Colmena' is part of the Hive Series by St. Louis Artist Jennifer Klemp.  This painting came several years after 'Alvarium'. These hexagonal paintings were adjunct to the drawings which were minimalist line drawings.
 
In "La Colmena" a primary color combination is evident, yet not intentional. There are some muted tones however, to balance out the strong primary colors. The red color is a cadmium red, which is very powerful. In oil painting you do not need much cadmium red to make a strong impact. I feel like warm and cool colors are equal in weight in this piece. Therefore, this print would sit nicely in a either a warm or cool setting, or just a plain white as in the 3rd picture on the swipe.
 
In additon, I intended for the hexagons to come into the grid, which they do, however, only slightly. The grid is definitley the dominant part of the painting, and it is as if the hexagons are making an entrace into the 'B' shape. I am really fond of the red shape in the upper portion of the 'B'. I feel that dominant shapes such as these are hard to create and still keep the balance of the painting.
 
"La Colmena" is hive in Spanish.
 
A note from the Artist:
"The Hive Series is a set of drawings that I did several years ago when I wanted to start painting about bees and their role as an integral part of our current eco-system.
 
Populations of bumblebees and other solitary bees have steeply declined in many places, largely because of insecticide and herbicide use, habitat loss, and global warming.  Some species, such as the rusty patched bumblebee, are even listed as endangered species.
 
If all of the world's bees died off, there would be major rippling effects throughout ecosystems.
 
Without bees, the availability and diversity of fresh produce would decline substantially, and human nutrition would likely suffer. Crops that would not be cost-effective to hand- or robot-pollinate would likely be lost or persist only with the dedication of human hobbyists.
 
MORE ON THE HONEYCOMB DRAWINGS AND PAINTINGS:
 
Honeycomb drawings are minimalist line drawings, which are made with hexagons. Instead of drawing bees per se, I started sketching what the bees created, which is the honeycomb. I did want to create paintings of actual bees, however, I felt a more modern interpretation would be the honeycomb, as it is a modern element, which is created by insects.
 
When I started drawing the honeycombs, I wanted to figure out how the hexagons could fit together and also move and I had trouble solving this puzzle. I really wanted honeycomb to curve.
 
Alvarium was the first painting in the Hive Series and at the time I created this piece, I did not know how to make the honeycombs curve or turn. I am estimating that I started this series around 2014. I have several drawings sketchbooks of the honeycombs and several small paintings that I created of the honeycombs in the years that followed the original drawings. None of the original works from the beginning are dated.
 
PROTECT OUR BEES
Beekeepers across the United States lost 45.5% of their managed honey bee colonies from April 2020 to April 2021, according to preliminary results of the 15th annual nationwide survey conducted by the nonprofit Bee Informed Partnership,
 
Since beekeepers began noticing higher losses in their colonies in the early 2000s, agricultural agencies, researchers, and the beekeeping industry have been working together to understand why and develop best management practices to reduce their losses. The BIP annual colony loss survey, which has been conducted  since 2006, has been integral to that process.