Breaking the Ice with Leftovers

Study of fields at Trough Hill Far in Middleburg VA

Trough Hill III. 6x12, oil on canvas panel. 2016

Procrastination is my forte. I've been finding other things to do for the past week rather than get back to the easel and start painting again.

Since I was unable to get out of the house today, I decided to break the ice on the new studio and do some sketching. This is based on a photograph and a couple of plein air paintings that I did last year in Virginia.

I used a simple palette of black, ultramarine, bright red, yellow ochre and cad yellow light (they just happened to be the paints that I had out). The panel is one of a handful that I made to use up leftover supplies before we moved and is made of muslin mounted on hardboard. I've discovered that it's a very nice surface to work on, as well as being cheap and easy to prepare.


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