Oak Ridge – Oil on Canvas – Plein Air – 11″ x 14″
After spending a frustrating day painting in the heat a couple days earlier, I ventured out to paint at a park that had held fair inspiration in the past. It had been a couple years since I painted at Oak Ridge.
Arrived and had to scrap my anticipated design. An oak tree that sat prominently along the river was no longer there. Heavy rains a few days earlier yielded a high waterline and negated the opportunity to get a favorable river view. As I played with ideas for capturing the river, this view of one of the field trees caught my attention.
The sky was overcast. I figured that it could be interesting and opportunistic if the conditions changed offered cloud patterns. My wish eventually came through. I worked the trees and meadow nearly to completion, when the sky began to break Before I could complete the painting, the clouds gave way to clear skies. With the sun to my back, the glare was too much. Back in the studio, about twenty minutes of fine tuning was all it took to finish this work.
