"Fall Color, Falling Light"

Pastel on sanded gatorboard, 24x20

This painting was originally called, "Across the Pond."  The original drawings and reference photos were done on an overcast day.  The colors were intense, but with no clear source of light and no deep shadows, it was difficult to capture the atmosphere that had impressed me. 

The pond surface is covered with spatterdock, a variety of water lily with large leaves.  The intense green of the lilies on the blue/gray reflections of the pond stood out against the golds, reds and yellows of the brush and trees.  It is that drama that I have sought to capture.  In the middle of the riot of color, stands the lone, faded duck box tilted a little forward with age.  Here lies my point of interest.

I placed the work-in-progress out on Facebook for comments and was flooded with good suggestions.  The final work is a composite of many of those ideas.