After a summer of trying to capture the beautiful bright greens of the Shenandoah Mountains, I decided to try something different. There were two things that influenced these next three paintings quite a bit.
The first was the sudden and unexpected loss of our pastor and friend, Lance King at Chesnut Grove Baptist Church. Following this loss I spent a lot of time reflecting on and grieving his presence. He was one of the most loving people I have ever met. His death left a huge hole in our church community and individual lives. Winter always reminds me of grief and loss as the trees lose their leaves and the colors become more subdued. It also reminds me that it is not the end of things. It is part of the cycle of life, and after winter, spring always returns.
The second thing that influenced these paintings was the realization that I have always painted in very bright, bold colors. I really like bright colors. They make me happy. But I also realize that they are not always the best tools for what I am trying to convey. I think that mastering more subtle shifts in tones can help with my overall skill as a painter.
These three paintings are all from places very important to me. The first one, “Under Heavy Skies”, is an image from Skyline Drive in Shenandoah National Park. It shows a view looking north towards the Massanutten Mountain range. I have always been intrigued by the way trees at the top of ridges outline and define the shapes of the mountains. The clouds look heavy as they hang over the land.
The second painting, “Others Have Passed This Way”, was actually the first one that I started. It is painted from an image at Big Meadows in Shenandoah National Park in the winter. I was thinking about the path that we take as we travel through grief. So many others around us and before us have walked this path. We are not alone.
The third painting, “Snowfall In The Valley”, is from a trip that my husband and I took to Canaan Valley, West Virginia last January. We started cross country skiing at Whitegrass Ski Center and headed up Three Mile trail to Roundtop. Somehow we made it from there to Bald Knob. It is such a beautiful area and there is an amazing view of the valley below. This time it was snowing and even though we couldn’t really see the view, it was still magical.
Through the creation of these paintings, I have become much more comfortable working with muted colors. I was amazed by how the slightest addition of color could really change the feel of the painting. I enjoyed playing with some alternate color palettes and new techniques.
Patsy Cooner Art 