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I am working on a large painting of “Oaktree in the Wind” from last week, but I am stuck! That’s when it’s a good idea to Pivot! When I was younger, if something didn’t work, I just continued to beat my head against it. Age has given me the wisdom to come at the problem differently. The pleinair below from Portugal is also of a tree, but I was never happy with it. Rather than mess up my large painting, I decided to solve my problems with the painting below. This is the perfect case of trying to focus on too many things. Ask yourself: is this a painting of the tree, or the chickens, or the palace in the distance? I decided it was the tree, and the chickens complemented that. So, the palace had to go along with the hedge. OK, then I realized the red-brown trunk was also dominating the tree when, actually, it was the unusual shape against the white cloud that I was after. Thus, the trunk took on a cooler color, while the play of light on the branches accentuated their twisting shape. So far, so good, but I did miss the palace. What if I slip a tiny palace in the distance? Perfect!
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