Soft Meadow View
Oil on canvas, 36 x 72 inches
In the studio
$8500 framed
 
About this oil:
I was immediately drawn to this view, the line of trees across a meadow with mountains in the distance. When I began to lay it out, I realized how much potential was in that long, sweeping six‑foot stretch of landscape.
 
Having that much canvas to work with gave me room to experiment with with color and composition. The right side quickly began to give me trouble, it just wasn’t interesting enough and nothing seemed to work until I added the band of blue‑purple trees in the middle ground, stretching all the way to the right. Suddenly, everything came together and the whole painting became more balanced, accentuating the layers moving back to the sky.
 
After that, I let the painting and color take over more. That led me to put in the bright yellow band near the top and the soft bands of color moving across the sky and meadow.
 
When it was done, it had this calm, peaceful presence that made all the struggles worth it.
        
It was one of those moments where you realize that being an artist gives you special privileges. This is a window into a place that never existed until now and it can be shared with others.
 
It reminds me of a story where an elementary school teacher was going up and down the desks, watching the children draw. She went to one girl and was confused by what she was doing and asked her, "What are you making?”
 
The little girl said, "I'm drawing a picture of God."
 
“But nobody knows what God looks like," the teacher said.
 
"They will in a minute.” the girl declared.