A Darker Mood

"Cling" 9 x 12 Chalk Pastel on Paper

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Here is another butterfly pastel, on Canson Mi-Teintes paper and with a little darker feel to it than the last one.


I normally paint in a bright and sunny fashion, as I happen to agree with Renoir's famous stance on ugliness in art: there's enough ugliness in the world, so why not paint beauty instead?


Ocassionally, however, a less cheerful mood will overtake some of my work. In this case, the colors came out fairly dark, and the butterfly took on the appearance of clinging to the foliage rather than hanging delicately as it was in my reference photo. The surrounding plants appear to part ways, as though a wind is sweeping through the area and leaving the butterfly to hang on desperately until it passes. There is light in the background, suggesting that the dark wind will pass and the warm light will take over.


The direction this painting took may have had something with the pea-soup fog we've been getting in the mornings, and the changing season. Fall is actually my favorite season, but it always takes some adjusting once the sun starts disappearing earlier each day.




"Beauty in Hiding" 18 x 24 Chalk Pastel on Paper



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