Sunswept Field with Snow

The temperature finally warmed up today to 27 degrees. In the sun, it was pretty pleasant. Of course, I ended up painting in the shade where a chill breeze was blowing off the bay. Trina, who came out to take some pictures for my new book, asked, 'Why are you painting in the windiest spot?' I didn't have a good answer at the time, as I was in the finishing stages of this little painting, which often is a time when my verbal circuits go dead. (When I'm teaching, of course, I always make sure to stop painting before I get to this point so I can still talk intelligently!)

I still don't have a good answer, though. There were plenty of great spots to paint in. I just loved the way the sun lit up the field from this vantage point. Sometimes we have to park ourselves where our feelings tell us to.

In addition to the painting below, I've included a shot of my paintbox. You can tell from the one brush in the brush holder that this was, again, a 'single brush' painting. I find that for these small paintings, my brush cleans easily because it doesn't get totally saturated with paint. I do take extra care to clean the brush well before punching up the highlights at the finish. You don't want muddy color when you're painting pure snow!

By the way, that pile of pinkish paint in the bottom right corner is what's left over from the previous painting session. Usually, I find a place to incorporate these 'palette scrapings' into the next painting. I didn't this time because the paint was a bit old and lumpy. I scraped it off and replaced it with today's leftover paint.

'Sunswept Field with Snow'

5x7, oil, en plein air - SOLD

Also, please don't forget to check out the preview of my show in Santa Fe!