I wanted a close up. I literally drove around for five days before I found this. I felt like a dog circling and circling before the right spot finally invited me to lay down.
This painting catches one of the last days of a long autumn. In this particular creek bottom the cottonwoods are a golden ocher with snippets of crimson and sap green. The canopy is still intact. The leaves are falling in a crescendo of color, bathing the world in golden light.
In addition to the color, there is a crazy amount of movement. The carpet of leaves that have already fallen is drying to a rustle. This amplifies the sounds of the wind or birds flitting between branches. A mouse scurrying makes almost as much noise as the cushioned steps of ungulates and carnivores who come here for a drink where the cover is still thick enough to effect anonymity in broad daylight.
It is truly a magical place & I remembered it from a hilltop some 50 miles away. It was a good memory which bore fruit. I will go back again.
8"x10" oil on board