TM8698 Up at the Lake 30×24 oil on panel

Yes, I’ve been spending lots of imaginative time in Lubec recently, but there are other subjects. This week I finally finished a smaller landscape that has been in the works for quite some time. The painting, begun last fall, was progressing well. In fact, it was almost done when I ran into a design problem – how to integrate the water (and its strong horizontals) with the cliff (equally strong verticals). I mulled it over for a few months, and nearly sanded the panel clean. Working on the foggy Lubec paintings gave me the idea of incorporating morning fog as a compositional device to integrate the two parts of the painting. Besides, I just love foggy mornings with all their sense of mystery. I think it worked. Now, the sunlight cutting across the tops  of the trees as matched by the light of the fog rising. The ineffable quality of the fog also balances the tough strength of the granite. Enjoy.

TM8698 Up at the Lake – close-up, top of rise