"Kennedy Center Nocturne"

"Kennedy Center Nocturne" 10x20 oil on linen panel

      Above is the finished painting that I had showed you while it was in progress. The photo in my last post was taken with my iPad and the red tones were stronger than in the actual painting. This photo was taken with my Nikon and is far more accurate. I find it very difficult to photograph nocturnes. The light has to be just right and the painting angled in such a way that a glare off the dark surface is not picked up. I guess there is as much trial and error involved in photographing these works as there is in painting them.

      There is a lot of variation in the night sky. I think painting without the light of the moon more difficult than painting moonlight. Clouds help. During a full moon in April I was studying the sky from my bedroom window. There were large cumulus clouds that the moonlight reflected off making the landscape surprisingly bright and there were a lot of cast shadows. It occurred to me that it would be like painting a sunny day painting but with a subdued, lower key palette. So, the next day I tried out that theory using my familiar farmhouse scene which I can paint from memory. It was quite easy.
Here is that little painting.

"Farmhouse Nocturne" 6x8 oil on panel

      Some night skies are inky blue, some ( like in my painting above) have a greenish tint and I find that when in the city the night sky seems more purple in contrast to the city lights. Since I live so near to the city I am also aware of the sometimes rosy and sometimes purplish light that reflects low in the sky and that I can see above the trees when I look toward DC. I added that light in the Kennedy Center painting near the horizon.
      We will be heading to the Outer Banks this week and I am disappointed that there will not be a full moon. It will be in its last quarter on Wednesday and I don't think there will be enough light cast on the ocean. Maybe next time.

LAST WEEK FOR THE MASTERS EXHIBIT www.salmagundi.org.  This is a beautiful show in the newly restored main gallery. The Club is at 47 5th Ave. NYC. My painting "Different Paths" is in this show.