California
Some work, some don’t
Friday, March 27th, 2009
48 x 24 x 2 inches acrylics on canvas, using masking medium to outline the mossy dead branches of a Grand Fir in front of a giant Sequoia.
Some work, some don’t, but I haven’t given up on it yet; work still in progress, but since this won’t be in the Raleigh show in 7 weeks I can’t afford to spend more time on it now. I hoped the flat white would work against a fairly realistic background, but it doesn’t. This could go a few ways: 1) flatten the whole surface and make the painting an abstract 2) downsize the sequoia, add shadow and color to the fir then create a more realistic forest scene 3) block out more dead firs with more masking fluid, echoing the main one, still as an abstract or realistic or 4) ditch it! Some paintings are worth spending time exploring when they reach a certain stage, and with others chalk it up as experience, re-cover the stretcher frame and move on.
On Cloud Nine
Sunday, February 8th, 2009
On Cloud Nine Left: The view from the road to the Giant Redwoods in the John Muir National Forest, western coast CA. Right: A forest fire still smouldering in October 2008, Mariposa Grove, Sequoia National Forest, central California.
Some new photos of the Giant Sequoias have been posted on majestyoftrees.com