Oil on panel, 24 x 24 inches, framed
Exhibited: Breckenridge Gallery, Breckenridge, CO
 
My thanks to the collector and Breckenridge Gallery for the sale of this oil.
 
About this oil:
Having grown up in Houston where snow is a rarity, I always enjoy the snowfalls here in Colorado. The Denver metro doesn’t experience as much snow as people might think, so short trips to the mountains nearby are always a treat.
 
The snow on the ground sets up a very high contrast scenario that I find irresistible. The objects surrounded in snow become more defined and important compositionally, drawing me in to record that scene.
 
But how? There is that thing about the color. This is a perfect example of the phrase, “hidden in plain sight.” The snow is not white but what is it? Excluding the shadows, the available colors are pretty subtle and difficult to discern. As a colorist, I love taking on the challenge of making these stark scenes more colorful and it was a big focus here. 
 
I decided to use more colors than usual and turned them loose on the background forest. I used the equivalent of every crayon in the box back there and as the painting progressed, the colors finally settled into a multi-colored curtain that surprisingly, became a major feature of the painting, very pleasant outcome.