Monday, June 27, 2016

First Light (Grotto House and Red Arch Mountain)

First Light #1, 9"x12", oils on Gessobord

During my stay in Zion NP my very busy daytime schedule (combined with the dry high desert air) usually meant that I was in bed by 8:30 and up by 5:30 (enjoying a pre-dawn breakfast, filling my water bottles and backpack, and planning another day of trail hikes, sketching and painting.)

Except in the area immediately around the Zion Inn most nights in the canyon were pitch black.

But not always.

During the full moon I stayed up to capture the amazing chiaroscuro effects of the canyon walls and floor bathed in moonlight (see the "Complementary Colors, Moonbeams and Shadows" post below.) and then stayed on to watch in fascination as the eastern sky brightened, the last stars faded, and the canyon's colors slowly awoke.

This week's post is the first of two attempts I made to capture the scene in oils. (I hope you like it.)

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