Rocky Mountain National Park #2

When I snapped the picture that was the subject of this painting I knew it was love at first sight. Most of my paintings evolve away from the picture and I begin to take alot of liberties with color and light and other style elements. This however was really a perfect composition. Even my first glance of the river while driving in Rocky Mountain National Park, I knew this scene at that moment would eventually be captured on canvas.

My trip to Colorado took place in the Summer, but this had alot of Fall colors which are great! The red tree really gives a nice accent. It may be difficult to see through the picture, but the rocks in the in raging river are created with thick layers of impasto and dried paint and glazing medium. A real 3 dimensional effect on the canvas.

I painted this during a period in my life when I had alot of external distractions. This coupled with the elaborate detail made the process take nearly two months. In the end I feel this might be my strongest work to date.

Rocky Mountain National Park #2 - 30x40" Acrylic on Canvas

Some Small Paintings of Rocky Mountain National Park

Oh those smaller paintings are so much trickier.

These 5x7" works reflect scenery I saw during my summer travels in Northern Colorado. Both are acrylic on watercolor paper. Both look really nice when they are matted and framed. These are a few of the works available this weekend during the Wake Forest Area Artists' Studio Tour.

Rocky Mountain National Park

My first complete painting reflecting my travels in Rocky Mountain National Park. A magnificent area indeed! So many inspirations arose from this trip, I was not quite sure where to begin as I have hundreds of pictures from the few days I spent in Colorado. The mountains are very different from those in North Carolina. Unlike the mountains in western NC that are densely covered with trees and vegetation, the Rockies have many barren spots that are just short grass and foliage. This is evident in this painting where the tree line start about 1/3 of the way up the mountain.

The colors of the setting allowed for vivid blues and greens in all areas of the painting. My version of a triangular sky giving a reflection of hundreds of squares in the river make a nice abstract quality to tranquil scene.

Rocky Mountain National Park - 30x40" Acrylic on Canvas