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C1582
"Winter Willows"
(Hot Springs,
Hart Mountain, Oregon High Desert)
Oil Sketch on Panelli Tellati Canvas Panel
With an additional coat of Williamsburg Lead
Ground
6" x 8"
(Take further Note: the
images and incidents herein occurred in December 2014.)
There was a
further ¾” of new snow on the roof of the truck this morning, and although
there was a chill easterly wind, I felt it was a warmer morning than
yesterday. I only drove from my campsite
to the beginning of the plowed road leaving the campground, when I was brought
up short by the early light hitting the Winter Willows along the creek, with
the snowy ridge of Hart Mountain against the blue-grey clouds beyond; never got
any further; remained here and painted instead of driving off in search of
somewhere else. The actual Hot Springs
are beyond the willows.
I chose a 6” x 8”
(15 x 20 cms) Panelli Telati canvas panel that I had given a further coat of
lead in oil ground over the factory acrylic priming; it took the paint nicely. I proceeded with an imprimatura of Venetian
Red (W&N), lighter than some of the recent ones I have worked over, and for
pigments used the usual suspects: Rublev Blue Ridge Yellow Ochre, Italian Burnt
Sienna & Lead White #2, with Winsor & Newton Venetian Red and Cobalt Blue,
and at the end of the painting used a mixture of Cadmium Red & Yellow with
a touch of Burnt Sienna for the brighter tints of the willow. I proceeded a bit differently on this work, in
that after sketchily drawing in the design with Cobalt Blue, and painting in
the sky as normal, I then blocked in the panel pretty much completely with
tints of a blue-grey mix from the mountain ridge to the foreground, to set the
values of the snow. Over this values
block-in I then went back in with the details: willows, rocks, junipers, etc. Twice
during the session I lost the tops of the ridge in light snow showers. Finally I brushed in the lighted area of snow
and willows, which contrasted nicely against the earlier dark valued block-in of
the snow.
Spotted an American Magpie, and a couple of raptors of
some description, while painting. Radio
says snow coming in, but sounds more serious in the northern Cascades; I have
supplies and the snowplow is only 5 miles away … I would only need to await its
arrival, in the normal course of its working, should serious snow fall
hereabouts. A lovely quarter inch fell
while preparing supper; nothing to worry about.
Really lovely Steve; I love how you caught the sunlight on the snow with the contrast of dark clouds.
ReplyDeleteJill ... Thank you ... Steve
ReplyDelete