SUNDOWN NEAR LAKE ANNA

Another painting from my Caulfield Gallery show for those who haven't been able to visit the gallery yet. This oil is yet another scene from the reserve near where I live and like two earlier posts features a quiet evening sky with the sun having already dropped below the horizon. The thin somewhat wispy clouds were the focus here, the ones in the upper part of the sky catching just a little of the sun's last rays. This painting is about color as well - they say that places change you and coming to the US has certainly changed me. My work before was much more muted in tone as well as color but now while I still love an understated work, I also feel free to indulge in bright colors and darker tones that I would never have used ten years ago. I paint these evening skyscapes not for the romantic view of sunsets, or even for their bold colors, but mainly as an expression of myself. This type of scene I hope reflects my feelings and love of the land.
At this time of the late evening, colors are quickly fading from the landscape and soon the sky too. There is an atmosphere of wonder and mystery, a feeling that anything could happen. Owls call, deer become active, mist fills the hollows and creeps slowly across the lake. Geese drop down through the deepening dusk and clatter noisily onto the water to roost. All is very moving and I stand as a silent witness to another night being born. Sundown near Lake Anna is 15" X 30".