Tuesday, October 27, 2015

Rooted Rock

There's a reason why New Hampshire is called "The Granite State". Rocks can be found anywhere and everywhere! Perhaps growing up and living the bulk of my life there contributes to my love of rocks of all shapes and sizes. I love to find trees that are seemingly growing from these rocks. Their roots are exposed and are so interesting to me. I'm drawn to their form and their ability to maintain the life of the tree despite the unusual growing conditions. Their shadows create the perfect environment for moss growth on the rocks that support them.

Painting this series of landscapes has allowed me to explore the variations of color that can be found in nature. Mixing batches of colors in advance and altering my base colors has enhanced my otherwise drab or flatly colored woods and foliage to give more meaning and depth. I'm finding that I absolutely love Pthalo Blue mixed with any number of colors including yellows and umbers to get my greens and earth tones. The time invested in the pre-mixing work has gone from being a dreaded step to one of my favorite parts of the painting process. Now, if I could only learn to consistently capture the colors of my paintings more accurately in my photographs I would be very happy!
Rooted Rock, 6 x 6 in, Oil on canvas panel