Friday, October 19, 2007

Stormy Rocks--Original American Oil Painting

This 8 x 10 oil painting is one I did some time ago. It has gone through several transformations in its short life time. It began as an experiment with underpainting of cadmium orange. Adding several layers of warmth gave it a very tropical feeling. The water develped an light aqua tinge. The entire painting felt foreign to my sensibilities. Living in the Pacific Northwest provides few opportunities to experience tropical waters and sunny, warm rocks. After the painting dried, I changed the mood again. Creating a foggy, cool environment felt more natural. The contrast between the water and the skyline almost disappeared as it does when banks of rain clouds and mist drift across the water's surface. Darkening the rock and adding a cool blue scrumble brought the temperature down considerably. Whether I liked the results or not was ambiguous, so I put it in the closet to dry. I often send paintings of questionable behavior to the closet. After its stint in solitary, I took another look and decided it was time to present it to the world and quit fiddling.
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