Resting by the Brook ~ A Lexington Virginia Landscape

It took me a while to get where I wanted to go with this painting.  I wanted to be able to look at it and feel the tranquility of the setting, even though there is a lot going on with the paint! 

Juxtaposition of colors, considerations of tone, and application of paint were some of the elements I dealt with on a daily basis.  I used both a palette knife and brushes.  Some colors were kept clean and separate and others were blended.  The natural tendency for me with this piece was to go more toward pointillism, but I made a conscious effort to blend some areas to reduce the busyness and balance the clean dabs of color. 

I’m enjoying painting every day.  Producing a new body of work invigorates me and gets me up for painting every morning (after a cup of coffee or two). 

I was drawn to the serenity of the scene and how the placement of the farmhouse and outbuildings were strategically built on the rolling hills by the winding creek.  I’m onto my next Virginia scene of a stream running through a meadow full of wildflowers in the springtime.  It’ll be big, 30 by 40, bright and colorful.

 I am spending a good bit of time in my studio and going through a lot of paint!  As always, I would love to hear from you.