Winter Barns, 12 x 16, UART 500
I’m back from a week in Massachusetts. Visiting my mother and giving a workshop on the Cape, along with three days of painting with friends were the highlights. The bombing and a fall that left me with an injured back were the negatives. This is the second demo I did for the workshop (Pastel Painters Society of Cape Cod). It’s an example of a center of interest painting. The left barn was supposed to be the center of interest but as I lowered the evergreens into the foreground and then added a tree in front, this area started to take prominence. The original photo was completely on one plane with a large, dull field taking up most of the picture! So they all agreed that I improved on the composition. They also made me stop! I’m not sure this is really done yet and I had to leave the picture there, but I thought I’d share it with you. This is one of the most lightly painted pastels I’ve ever done! It’s the same surface and place as the white house in Poolesville in an earlier post. The photo for this one was so uninteresting, however, that it really needed something! I did a watercolor wash and then applied pastels very lightly on over and redrew with graphite in places.
Hello Jean,
I can commiserate with you and your back injury. I assure you, you are not alone in that predicament. Take courage in that fact and in my experience that the human body is a magnificent “machine’ that always works toward healing itself and one must have patience for it to do so.
I love your painting and I agree that the focus has changed and for the better. I must confess the barn which you intended to be the center of focus seems inconsequential. My eyes went immediately to the trees and the painting has such depth. Love the idea of watercolor wash. By the way, I’m glad they made you stop working on the painting. It is wonderful just as you photographed it. Thank you so much for sharing your experiences and your paintings.
Hope you are feeling better.
Marie
Thanks Marie. I’m better now that I’m at home with my kitty cat (and husband!). I think I’m on the mend. Am also feeling really good that two of my pieces that I’ve had on the blog–Gracie and Fog Study in Blue–were accepted for the IAPS juried show. I’ll be there for the opening so I’m really happy about it.