#1998 "Lost in Leaves"

This is the eight demonstration piece for the Southampton Art School's Wind Waves and Weather 2017. We had a full and eager list of participants and we were still on Scubby's Bluff.

One participant had tackled a subject matter that included a tangle of sumac leaves and one that I would have shied away from. It is always good to get out of your comfort zone so I dove into a similar bramble of bushes and experimented how I might tackle those challenges. I decided to draw the main stars of the sumac leaves in dark and thin oil. After the drawing of the stars, it was just a matter of filling in the puzzle pieces and handling a few of the supporting characters. It was still a tangle of leaves that one could easily get lost in but it was fun. The leaves were not abstract but just tangled and maybe confused.

Cirrostratus along the high and leading edge of the warm conveyor belt was approaching from the southwest. A summer rain storm was on the way to put dampness on my camping and painting trip. It was still going to be fun though!

I treated myself to a double scoop of maple walnut ice cream and watched the sunset and the next batch of cirrostratus cloud approaching from the southwest. Everyone in Southampton wore a friendly smile... what a wonderful and peaceful and happy place. It was a privilege to have these artists come to the Southampton Art School to paint with me...