The Patapsco After the Floods

The Patapsco After the Floods, oil on linen, 14" x 11"

Last Friday the sun finally came out. I drove out to the McKeldin area of Patapsco State Valley Park to paint at my favorite spot, this bend of the river below the rapids. There was much evidence of the record rains and flooding of the past weeks along the trail--many trees, branches and leaves down everywhere.  Just above this spot there was one enormous tree lying across the stream where the flood had eroded the bank so much, the tree had been uprooted. This gave me a clear idea of how the water must have raged through here at the height of the storm.

Today, the water was back to its placid, normal flow. A sunbeam lit the ripples of water flowing over the sandy bottom, giving it a reddish tint. The leaves, though lush, were starting to show those yellow and bronzy tones of early fall underneath. It was so quiet--I encountered only a couple of elderly hikers on the trail. Later in the morning a group of preschoolers with their teachers hiked through my spot (I'd had to set up in the middle of the trail since there was very little bank left).

When I glanced at my watch I was surprised to see that it was almost two o'clock by the time the painting was complete. After I got home and looked at it again, I realized there was something not quite right about it--the values of the shady bank on the right side of the painting are too light. The land mass should have been darker than the water, and the greens there don't seem to belong with the color key in the painting either.

I had hoped to repaint that passage in the following days, but unfortunately, with my hard week-day schedule and having to work overtime this past weekend, I didn't get the chance. So here is the previous weekend's piece, mistakes and all. I'll post the corrected version for comparison later on.