Today I had the pleasure of painting outdoors on location with two other artists. (This is called Plein Air painting.) It was a very refreshing and invigorating experience. The pastel painting above was the first of the two, done under heavy cloud cover, which led to a hearty downpour. (My feet in my hiking books were subsequently sopping wet all day.) The overcast weather, however, really made the greens “pop,” as well as left our subject shadowless and not as changeable as we tried to capture them.

The pastel below was done midday after the rain. While immersion in the visual experience was wonderful, the auditory experience was stellar, with the rushing stream at my feet and deep bellows of bullfrogs ringing in my ears. Some people fish or hunt as an excuse to be still in nature. This is my style of the same, and is a rewarding way to practice listening and seeing.