Clear, Clean Water

The Clarity of Tahoe

Caught Rock Diptych
122" x 48"
Acrylic on Canvas

If you have never been to or seen Lake Tahoe it would be difficult to imagine the spectacular clarity of the water.  It is so clean you can see to a depth of 70 ft.  And this is the time of the year the lake is at highest clarity,  so imagine how fabulous it is to take my rowing shell out to glide over the mirror smooth, glass like surface, looking down through the transparent blues to the granite boulders below.

This is part of what inspires me to paint Lake Tahoe.

The blues range in color from turquoise to deep cobalt. And while the sky's reflection contributes a bit to the blue appearance, these vivid blues arise from the depths.  The color of Tahoe's water has been studied and the findings are that pure water has a natural light blue color that becomes a deeper blue to the observer as the thickness of the water sample increases.  The blue color is caused by the weak absorption in the red part of the light spectrum visible to the human eye.  The lake water appears blue in color as other colors in the light spectrum are absorbed and blue light is scattered back.  It is an artist's delight.

And so here it is.  Caught Rock Diptych.  Inspired by the magnificent clear, clean water of Lake Tahoe.  It is made up of two canvases, each 60" x 48", and hung with about 2" between the two canvases.  It is  powerful and commanding in size and composition.

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