#2277 "Singleton Summer Clouds"

I had some time to paint and the weather is always inspiring. Fair weather cumulus fueled by daytime heating from the August sun is always a favourite. These clouds are positively buoyant and uplifting both in a meteorological and mood sense. The painting is intended to be happy from the summer side of life as we prepare to fall into autumn. The cloud bases were flat at the lifted condensation level for the air mass. Dry parcels of air cool fast as they are lifted into higher realms of lower pressure and expand. Temperature, volume and pressure are all related through the ideal gas law. Turbulence was not a factor in lifting those air parcels from the ground to saturation as the cloud bases are not ragged and torn like the cuffs on old jeans.

The clouds were well reflected in the calm portions of the surface of Singleton Lake. The rippled water surface in the western basin of the lake tend to smear these reflections into the colourful average of chroma. Although this is a studio painting I tried to stay light and impressionistic with the brush strokes. Clouds are not white. The sky is not blue. Company was arriving soon after this sky inspired me so there was no opportunity to paint en plein air.

There was a light northwesterly breeze under the mainly sunny skies which is why the exposed west basin of Singleton was disturbed. The backlit cumulus were enhanced along the easterly extension of lake breeze convergence line from Lake Ontario which explains these particular clouds. A rain system was on the way in about 36 hours. The cirrus from this next system was still well to the west of Singleton. The daytime heating would be tempered when the cirrostratus arrived behind the deformation zone and these cumulus would fizzle.

For this and much more art, click on Pixels. Thank you.