The Trellis (Nov 2012)

While driving past the cemetery near our home one day this fall, I noticed the most amazing splash of bright red foliage.  In the same cemetery with the Sculpted Arborvitae I found this trellis and these red maples basking in the mid-autumn sunlight and warmth.  

The red was vibrant and vivid because the brilliant, early afternoon sun streamed in directly illuminating the foliage. The sunlight was neither hot nor directly overhead as on an early summer afternoon. Rather, it shined at a relatively long and oblique angle–just as you’d expect in the autumn, long light coming in low and warm from the southwest.

The sunlight was nevertheless brilliant and warmed the air and earth from the cold night that preceded it. The maples were set ablaze. Perfectly positioned to receive this long-angled light, the trees absorbed the entire light spectrum save for a shockingly arterial, red radiance that reflected back on me. I remember, as I painted, being warmed by the sun on my back and by the blazing trees on my front.

The Trellis is held in a private collection.

For my next and last work titled, Willow, you can click here to see it.