Beaverton Creek

It had been a cold January.

I resolved to make no resolutions for the new year.  Don't want to disappoint myself.  The inactivity has contributed to the build-up of my love handle.  I really didn't want to be snatched up by Michelin to be their tire model, so I ventured out to my favorite hangout Beaverton Creek, despite the lingering freezing fog.

The sun was actually trying to fight through the fog.  It was interesting to experience the stillness of this crisp morning through the haze, involuntarily wiping my wet nose with the back of my hand.  I was a kid again.

So I've been thinking about painting this experience.  I just couldn't decide on how to convey my feelings.  Eventually I decided on forging ahead with the first stroke to get things rolling.  Too much thinking and plotting actually destroys the spontaneity.  I am hoping that once I started, I would be in a groove.

I wanted to let the color of the painting to set the mood.  I prepared a very weak wash using Label 3 Green and laid down the landscape using the splash ink method.  Splash ink could literally be pouring a dish of pigment onto the painting surface if it is large enough, and guide the flow by using brushes or tilting the surface.  In this case I used a large brush.  This is very therapeutic.  This is Xieyi at its extreme.  Large expressive movements without too much concern for details.

I then prepared different hues by mixing Label 3 Green (173) with Label 3 Blue (493) and ink.  I worked to reveal layers of trees and shore line.  Using yellow I dabbed  in the initial highlights.

I had envisioned a glistening water surface of the creek despite the lack of direct sunlight that day.  I misted my Xuan paper with a solution of gum and alum with a spray bottle, and had hoped that these droplets would work as a resist and not take on pigments, thereby revealing white spots as glistens and voids in the woods.  This effect is usually more pronounced when viewed from the back of the paper.

 backside of Xuan

 front of Xuan    

I am now faced with the dilemma.  Should  I now paint on the back of the Xuan or continue to work on the front.  Working on the back would allow a stage for the alum white specks and would be more true to what my initial concept was.  The back it is !

 Alum white specks

But then the left and the right side of the image would be flipped. 

 

Oh well, it is time to take a break.  I'm going to walk away from this and look at it again in a few days or weeks and gather my thoughts again.