Layer after Layer
When looking at the world, it is natural for us to look at the surface, to see the now, and to experience things as they are without seeing how they got there. The high mountain lakes of the sierras have formed over millions of years of incremental change…with each successive season carving rocks and creating the landscapes we enjoy today. To achieve the visual impact of the crystal clear water, depths, and reflections I knew I needed to take my time and paint successive layers:
1) The basic underlying tones of the rainbow. Red, orange, yellow, green, blues, indigo and violets were applied as a first layer base to the water.
2) Successive layers of color and depths were added to show the ground beneath the surface and shadows of rocks and boulders.
3) Reflection layers show the forms and directions of waves and ripples mirroring elements of the sky.
Continuous iterations of the basic layers and glints of light form a final complex vision of the earth, water and sky together in two dimensions. Sometimes it is only when one can see and appreciate each successive layer that you can truly recognize and understand what your eyes naturally piece together as a single image.