Looking For Colors in the fog

Painting shows the fog lifting a little after I arrived

photo taken when I started my painting

The day after I returned from a 5 day NYC art trip a paintout had been planned at Bond's Lake. Although I was not entirely ready to start painting right away, I still had art to unpack and put away, I went. Sherrill Primo had graciously offered to pick up my paintings from the NFPAP show at 464 Gallery and had them in her car.

As I drove north, a dense brown cloud appeared across the horizon, as I got closer to Lewiston I saw it was low to the ground right where I was headed, making a right turn, I drove right into intense fog, which appeared gray white from the inside. Again, I hesitated to continue, knowing that it was too dense to find my artist friends in the desolate park. I continued and realized the opportunity the fog presented in a painting, plus, I found them all easily at the end of the park road.

Glad to have my pastels, I set up quickly and made color notes on the lightly sketched page so that I would have the colors established as the fog lifted. The distance was invisible, just a shadow on the sky, and the middle ground alternated between fuzzy and gone altogether. This was a fairly quick plein air and I am so pleased that the fog remained when I needed it. As I finished the fog lifted and an amazing set of early fall colors appeared in the island in the distance. So glad I didn't see them earlier.

Looking for Colors in the Fog 9x12 pastel c. 2015