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| Cedar Ridge |
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| From Hermit Trail |
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| From Hermit Trail II |
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| Kaibab Juniper |
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| from Kaibab Trail |
Here are the charcoal sketches I mentioned in my last post. I worked from photographs, using about a one-inch piece of compressed charcoal. Each drawing measures about 12×10 inches. The idea behind doing this step is to extract the essence of the place from the photo. A photo often shows too much to be used in a painting. I’ve found a lot of my creativity is lost by working directly from a photo, losing myself in trying to copy exact colors and details. A painting should be filtered through me, to become a landscape painting that communicates my perception of the place. I then paint directly from these sketches, making up the color as I remembered seeing it in person. The sketches serve as a value study and a place to experiment with different designs, like moving a tree slightly or darkening a certain area. To me this is an exciting part of creativity where I can use my imagination!
