Snow Changes Everything

Our recent snowstorms in Denver have reminded me how snow can be a great unifier in a painting. I have walked past this location many times in downtown Denver and, finally seeing it covered with snow, made me realize it could make an interesting painting. The blanket of white covered so many unnecessary details and simplified the scene. The current Claude Monet show at the Denver Art Museum explains how he struggled to capture all the reflected colors in snow rather than just painting it pure white. In this painting I used pastel shades of cerulean blue, rose dore, yellow ochre, cobalt violet, warm and cool grays, and cool green as well as white paper to catch the subtle beauty of the snow. Monet's reference to silence is interesting because snow does muffle sounds and eliminate traffic. I was lucky that it was a wet snow storm which stuck to everything and there were construction cones and barrels that were gone a few days later. The light rail train made a nice focal point and all the people in their winter garments added color and rhythm to the composition. My style of direct painting is evident through out and you can see dripping paint, spattering, visible brushstrokes, and colors mixing right on the paper. If you live in a town where it snows, follow in Monet's footsteps and try capturing a snow scene in paint. I recently set up a Pinterest site and I am excited for this new venture. If you have a Pinterest account and you enjoyed this email, please consider pinning it to your Pinterest account using the icon below. Happy Painting! Dennis

“What keeps my heart awake is colorful silence." Claude Monet