Demo: "Rhodora & Alder" 8x8 Oil

“Rhodora & Alder” 8x8 Oil

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Getting back into painting after a break, however short, always takes some work. I've previously said that it's like riding a bicycle, but it's really never quite like that. Rather, there's a certain amount of retraining involved. Maybe it's more like running a foot race after a year away from it. You'll struggle unless you start training small—first with maybe a mile a day, then three miles a day, and finally on up to whatever length the race is going to be.

So here I am, back at my summer studio, retraining. Today, it's an 8-by-8-inch canvas. Small, yes, but at least I'm moving paint around.

This week, we took a hike through one of the Roosevelt-Campobello International Park's fascinating bogs. The rhodora, acres of it, was in full, breathtaking bloom. In my 20 years on the island, I've never seen the rhodora looking so beautiful. (I've always liked Ralph Waldo Emerson's poem, "The Rhodora," which I'll copy at the end.) Here's a photo, which really doesn't give you any sense of the expanse of pink and purple:

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I wanted to paint the scene, and although I felt my small canvas was hardly sufficient to depict the full glory of the moment, at least it would be a start. (Probably an 8-by-8-foot canvas would be more fitting!) Anyway, I was more interested in exploring some color ideas.