Uneasy Spring

                                                  
            As to the painting title, it asks has spring really arrived, or does the sky portend
            the return of winter?   However, there is more than just seasonal change portrayed
            here.   Young evergreens are shown coming up among those destoyed by fire.  
            In turn, they will succumb to fire and/or bark beetles, as in the infected trees
            appearing behind them to the left.  

            The elk are changing their behavior and the reproductive rate for that portion
            of the northern elk herd that still migrates has fallen significantly.   Is it just
            because of the reintroduction of wolves?   Is the increase in the grizzly population
            throughout the Greater Yellowstone Area responsible, or are the elk just changing
            their behavior because of the effect of fire and disease on their food supply?  
            Have the years of drought finally taken their toll?  

            How do all these things interact?   We are uneasy as we really just begin to cope
            with identifying natural change and a role for ourselves in it that does not endanger
            our natural way of life.   For us it is indeed an uneasy spring.

           This painting also illustrates the challenges that can result from introducing major
           value changes to the scene being painted.   Jim's analysis and comments;

           "The reference photo was taken in Yellowstone National Park from the Grand
             Loop Road a bit south of Swan Lake.   While an interesting composition, the
             photo lacks punch because of the soft foreground lighting and the cloudy,
             dull sky.   The right-hand hill appears to be the center of interest because of
             its shape, its contrast against the sky, and the bright patches of hillside snow
             which draw the eye.   The elk are almost lost in the foreground tree line.
             These problems can be corrected by making some value changes.   However,
             this in turn can lead to the need for changes to much of the rest of the scene.

                                         

             As with most of my paintings, the sky was addressed first.   Some areas were
             darkened to make the white cloud stand out and Vermillion was used to add
             warmth to selected areas to further heighten interest.

             With an interesting but not overwhelming sky for the background, the hills
             were addressed next.   The forested and open areas were made significantly
             lighter, coming close in value to parts of the sky.   Color changes were used
             to keep the hills from becoming 'lost' in the sky.   The snow remnants were
             ignored for now.   The middle ground trees on the left (behind the large trees)
             were put in relying on similar values with differences only in shape and color to
             allow them to show, but unobtrusively.   They are important in that they bridge
             the gap between the foreground tree line and the hills, adding depth to the scene.

        

             The foreground tree line was started with lighter values and yellower colors
             to help the elk stand out against it.   However, this was too close to the
             value of the hills.   Those hills were revisited, scumbling the lower reaches
             with purple to darken them.   The elk were started, the sunlit grass was added
             and the tree line was completed.   A very blued-down white was used for the
             hill snow lines to avoid drawing the eye to them.  

             A lot of changes were needed in the foreground.   The shadow line parallel to
             the trees in the photo is a visual 'stop' and the near foreground is a flat, dull
             jumble of similar values and colors.   Overall, there is little feeling of depth.

             Subsequent work went back and forth between the tree line, the large trees,
             the foreground area and the elk.   A much warmer sunlight was depicted,
             allowing the use of red-green complements to help the elk stand out from the
             evergreens.   Variations in the foreground terrain were introduced to add depth
             to the painting.   It was also arranged so as to lead the viewer into the painting.

                   

             This is a good point to make some comments on color.   There is almost no
             blending between near and far elements in the original scene.   In the painting
             value and color changes were used to differentiate between them.   Color was
             also key to tying these scene elements together, adding a sense of harmony
             to the painting.  

             As can be seen in the detail below, the open areas of the hills were painted
             with a mix of the sunlit grass color and sky gray.   The hill shadows were
             scumbled on using a sky gray with more ultramarine blue and some alizarin
             crimson added.   (Later, to add further depth to the painting, the top of the far
             hill was pushed back by scumbling in a very light blue.)   Much lighter and
             darker values of the hill shadow colors were used for the foreground rocks.  
             The red-orange in the elk is repeated in the foreground brush and lighter
             touches of it appear in the shadowed grass, tree trunks, the rocks and even
             in the evergreen tree line.  

                            

             The large trees to the left were simplified to be less distracting and to eliminate
             the appearance of ending at the edge of the painting.   The remaining major
             task now would be to make an unambiguous center of interest.

                                   
 
     
 
             The center of interest was intended to be the fourth elk from the left.   Her
             placement relative to the other elk and her posture (head up, looking at the
             viewer) make this a natural choice.   (If she had not been in this postion, she
             would have been placed there in the painting.)   The brightest white, darkest
             shadows and brightest red-oranges were used for her.   On the other elk,
             some of the darker shadows were scumbled with a dull brown and lighter areas
             were scumbled with a very light red-brown.   The rightmost elk was changed to
             be looking heads up out of the picture.   The lead elk in a group often "scouts"
             the area ahead.   Putting the evergreen in front of her keeps this natural pose
             from drawing too much attention.   While all this helped, the key change was
             to brighten the sunlit grass leading up to the elk of interest and to just slightly
             tone down that to either side of it.

  

             Should you venture into Yellowstone and look for this scene, in the future it
             will become more difficult to find.   The reference photo was taken in 2002 if
             I remember correctly.   The photo below right was taken in mid-May 2010.  
             Many of the dead trees have fallen, and the young evergreens now hide most
             of the near hill.   It also appears that some of the trees at the top of the far hill
             are gone.   While YNP is meant to be preserved, there will be change."