Summer in the Fall

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

Last weekend when it was hot and humid, I got a paddle in before starting this plein air painting. Eager to escape the heat, I grabbed a watercolor sheet from a sample pack purchased years ago from Cheap Joe's, a big art supply store, and headed up to a local pond. When arriving by the water I realized how surreal the day was. The forecasted high for the day was above ninety degrees, which here in Vermont, a week shy of October, is not normal. The docks from the various beaches had been brought in for the winter, yet as I paddled around the perimeter of the water, there were more people on the beaches and in the water than I have ever seen.

When I started to paint this scene, the parking lot and boat landing, which is nearby, were still full of people and automobiles. After putting this aside for a few days, I found that I like the abstract quality of the washes. The subject and painting techniques, at least to me, have a Winslow Homer quality. I feel like my color mixes are attaining a greater richness, more accurate to what I am experiencing out in nature. There is a directness to plein air painting, which is unlike anything done in the studio.  I am eager to get back to this watercolor even if I have to finish it indoors, but I have been busy.