'The Road to Stow'

oil on board

8" x 12"

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The subject of this painting is a road I walk down frequently. This morning, the rows of trees lining the road along the grass verge were casting wonderful shadows in the sunlight...so I decided it was perfect time to paint it! I took a photo as a reference just in case the sun went in...as if! And I'm glad I did because as I was preparing to return with my materials, the clouds rolled in, the heavens opened and that was that! The phone photo that I had taken wasn't ever so accurate regarding colour and values so I had to improvise and rely on memory. I tried to keep the painting uncomplicated and concentrated on the shapes that I had noticed through the trees which had been created by the sharp contrast of light and dark values. I feel this has given the composition a strong abstract element which is what I tend to look for, especially in landscape.