Painting Snow, then and now....

...my mother was my biggest fan as I was learning to paint, I am grateful

not only for her support and encouragement but for the fact

that she kept a few of those early pieces around...

So in tribute to those who were our earliest "enablers" I want to share this experiment I did recently.

This piece is dated 1962 and bears my signature.  I am guessing it is painted in "casein" paint as artists were not commonly using acrylic until a few years later.  I was 10 years old and in Ms Barbara Bassett's art class for children.  We painted from postcards, calendars and the National Geographic Magazine.  I was in awe of her and all that she could teach me.  I also had never seen snow before.

My Mamma was tickled with this piece and paid to have it framed.  The "provenance" of the art is written on the back in Mom's handwritting: loaned to Grandmother Manley, 1966-68; and loaned to Grandmother Horton, 1969-70.  

Somehow I could not part with this piece of my childhood and although I did not have the original scene it was painted from I decided to try painting it again.  This time I would start in acrylic and finish in oils.  And this time, 50 years later, I have seen snow...many times!

I decided to stick with the original composition as I had no other guidelines.  And while today I might not choose to paint a huge tree standing in the middle of a field all alone, I guessed there was something that appealed to me about it as a mere gal of ten.

I know as a child, and even today all grown up, I wondered what was in those barns shut tight against the snow.  There is nary a hint (other than a silo) as to what the farmer and his family produced.

I tried an even smaller version of this scene hoping I could loosen up a bit.  But stark red barns against cold white snow stay pretty harsh in contrast even with an artist's eye, especially in 8x10.  

So it's pretty much as it was...late afternoon sun on a cold field of snow, proud red barns under the guardianship of an old leafless tree.  Kinda makes me want a cup of hot chocolate!

Second Verse, Same as the First,
Cindy