In The Running Brooks Painting

This is an oil painting from my River Stones series, depicting stones on the river banks of the Skagit River in northern Washington State. I use the classical indirect painting method, which involves multiple thin layers of oil paint, allowing the canvas to dry between layers. This technique creates a glowing optical effect based on the varying ways that the various pigments reflect light (i.e., refractive indices)... While hiking in the North Cascades last September, I emerged from the woods onto the banks of the Skagit River and a beach covered in beautiful river stones. The variations of color within the stones was subtle, yet surprisingly kaleidoscopic. I immediately envisioned large-scale paintings, work that would dramatically capture the natural beauty of these stones, while also emphasizing their more abstract shapes. The Skagit is the largest and most biologically important river draining into Puget Sound. It is the site of a major salmon run, as well as the largest feeding site in the country for the American eagle, which feeds on chum salmon on its riverbanks from December to February. In photographing my reference images on the riverbank, I used still life concepts to determine how best to frame each image for a pleasing composition. I am particularly fascinated by the abstract shapes of these stones, and the interstices between them. Their complexity makes them an ideal subject as I move from the formal realism in which I was trained to an exploration of the abstract. Although time-consuming to paint, due to the endless variations of color and value in each stone, this work has also been quite meditative and joyful to create. I am fascinated with what is often overlooked.

Painting:Wood on Wood

Original:One-of-a-kind Artwork

Size:10 W x 10 H x 2 D in

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