On Friday I drove to Dabob Valley near Quilcene to make a painting. I found a good subject, made a pencil sketch, set up my easel, and got ready to paint. No palette! I had left my palette and all my paints back in the studio. Feeling a little foolish, I drove home and made the painting from memory and the photos I took. Perhaps the painting was better because of it.
My memory of the valley includes a series of ridges receding into the distance, all covered with scraggly fir trees. I set a barn in the valley to provide a pop of red color.
While I was at it, I made a second painting from memory. This is Dabob Bay looking toward the Olympic Mountains. I made up the boat in the water and the red skiff on the beach.
In both of these the blue mountains in the distance look really good.
The little line of trees on hte left of the Dabob Valley painting really capture my imagination and make me really love that painting.
Thanks, Guy! I like the blue mountains, too. Blue is a cool color and pushes the mountains back into the distance. The little line of trees in the Dabob Valley painting are pretty strong. Maybe they pop out too much. But I like them!