My Favorite Inspiration
Actually I just wanted some exercise, I wasn't looking for inspiration, so I lowered my Alden Quest rowing shell from the davit on the pier into the crystal clear water of Lake Tahoe. There is a process, a ceremony, to get the boat into the water, the oars in place, gloves on and myself into the boat. Once settled, the oars skim over the glassy smooth water, as I propel the shell and my body, in a fluid, rhythmic cadence away from the shore, out towards my favorite rock formations. This is almost meditative, it is so quiet and peaceful. The rhythm is like a chant. And certainly this activity is inspirational for my painting because my mind can wander and the things I see, Oh My!
I think I see the rocks and water differently each time I am out there. And certainly the conditions vary each time I am out there making the visuals unique.
But from these photos you can see why I am driven to paint my vision of these rocks and water. The rocks are massive and powerful. The colors are intensely clear and clean. I wish you could feel the air.
Whether it is looking at the sky, the boulders, the surface of the water or down through the depths, it all become fascinating. Captivating.
I am smiling, at peace and energized at the same time. I see the next painting and the one after that, and the one to follow. All of a sudden I want to be in front of my easel, holding my palette, applying pigment to the canvas.
Reversing the process, I glide back to the pier, go through the ceremony of replacing the boat in the davit, putting the oars away, taking a last look at the beauty of the lake and get myself inside to my sketch book. The morning row didn't start out as a way to gather inspiration, but it certainly became that.
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