(2) Tall Grass and Winter Cuttings

11 x 14” watercolor on paper - $75

18 x 24” oil on paper - Sold
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Early July. The tall grass only partially obscures the winter cuttings (pruned apple branches). I sat in the mowed path providing a frame to either side of the picture. The flowing lines of the grass wind through the middle of the painting. One reason for this spot was the vibrant contrast between the purple (cuttings) and the yellows (the grass and sun cast light on the trees). I over did the trees, though the purple and blue lines help to define the shapes, especially the clouds.

The explosion from the grass and cuttings work well.
The oil version included an intentional technique of using small dots (Pointillism) though unlike true Pointillism that uses specifically primary colors, I used a variety of colors in the foreground path. This choice was to create a shimmering effect in the shorter grass.

As the trees evolved in this oil, I was reminded of Cezanne (though I will not dare to compare my work to his) and his ability to marry nature with geometric shapes. Paul Cezanne was quoted as saying:

“… treat nature by means of the cylinder, the sphere, the cone, everything brought into proper perspective so that each side of an object or a plane is directed towards a central point. Lines parallel to the horizon give breadth ... lines perpendicular to this horizon give depth. But nature for us men [and women] is more depth than surface, whence the need to introduce into our light vibrations, represented by the reds and yellows, a sufficient amount of blueness to give the feel of air.”