Personal Art Blog

Sharing the lessons I teach at the Artist Guild and the personal discoveries in my art.

Monday, February 6, 2012

Desert Path





Desert Path

6x8in  oil on canvas board   100.

This should be an arroyo but it isn't because it has no sides carved out by rushing water after a rainfall.
These natural and sandy pathways meander through the brush, cactus and mesquite shrubs, which in turn weave patterns of color to contrast against the sand.

Artist Note:

Painted in the car on trip back home.
The palette knife was used.  Each little bump in the road adds a bit of excitement...some good and some bad.
I tried to capture the darker pattern cast from the overhead clouds but they ended up looking like a shape of land below the mauve mesa. Does it matter? Nah! In fact it gives it some punch.




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5 comments:

  1. I love the texture on the foreground -- its randomness generates a lot of interest. I guess the knife is a lot harder to control than the brush, but because of this, it adds so much naturalness in contrast with the more deliberate brushwork -- works great for the shrubbery!

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  2. Beautiful landscape, Julie!!! You do excellent work with the palette knife. Gorgeous colors and shadow work!!

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  3. I just love it that you do this in the car! I can't wait for our next long road trip and I plan on trying it! Beautiful work.

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  4. The mixed color and extra warmth in the foreground color is really effective. Beautiful!

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  5. i just spent some time looking at this close up and am astounded by the complexity of the underbrush you accomplished with a knife!!! in a moving car??? simply outstanding work. and the shadow from the clouds reads perfectly! i'm a happy follower and thank you so much for your very generous comments on my blog!

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I love that you are taking the time to comment and thank you for it. I am sure other readers will enjoy them too. If you cannot comment through this format then email me at juliefordoliver@gmail.com
Cheers,
Julie