Misty Morning Painting on a Florida Canal, or 50 Shades of Grey

50 Shades of Grey...

...means something entirely different to an artist!  Fifty shades of grey is a gauntlet thrown down and a puzzle to be solved.  So when I saw this photo taken by a friend from her backyard early one morning I knew I had to rise to the challenge.

After I contacted her, Roz Cobb, Melbourne community volunteer, friend, mother and grandmother, quickly gave me permission to play with her photo.  My goal was to get a credible, artistic interpretation of the feeling of this morning as opposed to an exact replication.  Looking at the photo I could almost feel the mist in the air before the sun burned it off and I wanted to achieve that same yearning of possibility.

Palm trees are synonymous with coastal Florida so I definitely wanted more interest on them than the nondescript tree on the right.  But the lack of mist on the right hand tree does provide depth so I did not leave it out.  When I got to this stage I realized it was too small to do its job so I went back in and worked with it some more.

Some of the many shades of grey include the yellow of the sun trying to rise, the early morning pink of the sky, the lavender of dark blue and the actual 45 other shades grey.  This was a painting that I could continue to work on for months to come.  Every time I look at it I want to add another layer of haze in just a slightly different mix.  But alas, life goes on and other canvases await: I had to draw the line and let it dry!

Hope Roz is not sorry she granted me such license to play with her "morning mist!"

"Yearning"  20" x 16" oil on canvas

$300 framed

p.s. I have been told time and again that the internet depiction of my art does not hold a candle to the "real thing."  So if you wish to see this piece "in person" just let me know.

Grey-fully yours,  (because grey is a color too!)

Cindy