Third Painting Session on "Blue Ridge"

"Blue Ridge", 24x30 oil on linen

     I duked it out with Blue Ridge for the better part of today and I am still not finished.  I got off track with this one and created some problems that needed to be solved.  I am still solving them.

     To begin with my horizon line in my study was lower making the painting mostly about the sky.  As I painted the rolling pasture the horizon line rose as I became intrigued by the colors and undulations in the field.  This got close to dividing the painting in half.  I don't like that.  Especially when the sky is so blue and the fields so green.  Spring and summer here is REALLY green and I have to mix lots of different greens and neutrals to keep the painting from just screaming green!  Three other things I did to keep the painting from dividing in half were: 1. Add more receding clouds near the ridge line creating a greater sense of distance  2. Accentuate the line of the far end of the field where the sun was hitting.  I made this a light yellow to draw the eye more to that line which is below the half way point.  3. Add more blues and yellowish pinks to the foreground to echo the colors in the sky and clouds.  These things helped a great deal.
       I am still working on the lower right corner and like the old fence I added here.  I am painting with both palette knife and brush and the texture is pleasing. The cornflowers (blue) and buttercups in the foreground are just flicks of the knife.  Those cornflowers really help tie the foreground to the sky.  I had such a good time with the texture that I neglected to put the horses in the pasture.  The surface is a little too thick to do that now without making them look tacked on given the scale they would be.  I had planned on placing them midground near the clump of trees.
      I have learned quite a bit from this painting and I would like to follow it with another of almost the same scene.  I would like to make the horizon line lower in the next one and add horses as I originally planned.

"Painting Lavender at Willow Pond Farm" 11x14 oil on panel SOLD!

     I am happy to say that "Painting Lavender at Willlow Pond Farm" was sold at the Art League Bin Gallery this week.  I know the buyer and I am so happy that this painting will reside in the foyer of her home in Alexandria! www.jeanschwartzpaintings.com