The weather has been rainy and cold, not conducive to painting outdoors... I have been busy doing some studio paintings for two upcoming shows, but deep in my heart, I cannot wait to be outdoors. I'm hoping for at least one glorious fall day while the leaves are still on the trees.
This painting was done on location, one evening in late August. My favorite part is the distant hill. I used a pale orange hard pastel, followed by pale blues and greens, and the mix set the tone for the rest of the painting. It was one of those experiments that turn out to work well. I finished the painting at home from memory, but all it needed was some adjustment in the color temperature of the shadow in the middle ground.
Contrary to what I would have done, one of my fellow painters suggested no to give much definition to the foreground sunflowers. I think the idea is to let the viewers look at the painting and spend some time figuring out what's in there. I'm still figuring out myself if that's the way I want it... I might even crop it.
