That Easy, Peaceful Feeling

Some scenes you never tire of.  Such is the

path in the reference photo I used below.  I have painted

it numerous times.  I have had several students

take it on.  It's never the same and the story always

unfolds slightly differently.

I think I took the photo on a hike out west but I wouldn't swear to it.  It's one of those personal yet generic photos of a path in the mountains.  It offers foreground, middle ground, background and sky.  There's a rhythm to the path and it's my go-to when I need to visit a familiar place while painting.

I started this in oil using a lot of medium to build up some texture.  You can easily see the wide brush strokes left from the first layer of paint.

I enjoy starting several pieces at a time so that I don't overwork them and have something to do while the first ones dry.

I refined my colors a bit using the texture of the first layer and adding more where I could.  

And slowly I tightened things up, softened some edges and planted the flowers.  By this stage I was meandering slowly down the path thinking it might take a downward slant just around the bend.  I was looking forward to seeing if the flowers would blanket a meadow below or if more rocks might show up so I could sit on them and breath a bit.  Sometimes painting is a bit like watching the travel channel, you can visit wherever you wish without leaving home.  Doesn't that mountain air smell good?

"That Easy, Peaceful Feeling"

oil, 12 x 16, unframed

on canvas

Hiking the Easy Way,

Cindy