Monday, January 26, 2009



Stream in January

Watercolor, 5" x 7"
$125 plus $6 shipping in U.S.
SOLD


I love winter. There...I said it.

I'll complain with the best when a cold wind whips down my coat collar, or blurt out unsafe for the office words when the battery goes dead on a frosty morning. But deep down, I do love winter.

Visually, I love how winter clarifies. Contrasts sharpen, objects stand out in stark relief against pristine whiteness. Snow and ice edge the stream like a mat surrounds a picture, presenting it to you. Color harmonies are delicate, but reward the seeker. Falling snow and drifting fog simplify complex areas into subtle tonal fields, adding cloaks of mystery.

And the mysterious, I realize, is a large part of my attraction to this season. Winter transforms the familiar. Under a fresh blanket of snow, the most mundane view--that cow pasture or little grove of trees off the kitchen window--becomes suddenly another world--strangely remote, a little...wild. Winter, after all, is the season that shows us we are not really in control. There's an edge. Danger lurks.

Many feel that winter is a time when the world closes in upon them, but I've never felt that way. Winter excites my imagination. In winter my world seems larger, scarier, more real and more fantastic all at once. And beautiful beyond description.



16 comments:

Lynne said...

OK Don, that is just plain awesome! I LOVE the movie footage and sound of the stream, but the way you wrote about winter in this post is really the poetry of today for me. Of course your painting must be acknowledged...you are a full service artist!
Lynne

Pierre Raby said...

Inspiring- thanks for sharing your world.

Frank Gardner said...

Hi Don, soothing video. I can appreciate your love for winter. Nicely written.
I do like it, even though I dont see much of it any more.

Anonymous said...

SOLD! Already! I knew I'd love it.And ,you DO put words together so well... Lu

Mary Sheehan Winn said...

The post is poetic and I concur with you, though I am a Florida snowbird now and am missing a big one two punch in New England this week. 10" forecast for Wednesday and more on Friday. I don't miss the clean up, though.
Your painting is fabulous.

Vikki North said...

Hello Daily man of the west,
We have been watching you. We are artist also. At least that's what they call us. You may even know us. We'd like to invite you to a member of our very Private Club. We're very selective and only an elite few are welcome on our hallowed grounds. We pick you.
We even have a little 'chit chat' room just for the likes of you. It's rightfully called Dante's Pub. But when your enter BEWARE! You are entering the abyss of the artist mind! You may not find your way out.
You're welcome to watch from afar while drinking your brew or pull up a chair and join us for a little chat. Be sure and register and then log in. After all, this is a very private club. We don't allow just any wanderer in our midst.
Don't dilly dally now! It wont cost you a pence. Check out The Artist Challenge and Dante's Pub- that is if your daring and think yourself worthy to be amongst the souls we've claimed?
Farewell...until we hear from you,
Master Mike and the Pub Wench
Artist Challenge- http://www.theartistchallenge.com/
Dante‘s Pub - http://www.theartistchallenge.com/art-forum/

Don Gray said...

Lynne, it's great of you to say that--thanks a lot! Loved your beautifully written tribute to Wyeth.

Don Gray said...

Thanks, Pierre, and thanks for sharing yours as well!

Don Gray said...

Hi Frank--thanks a lot. I recall when we lived in SoCal how weather was just a non-issue, which certainly held its own charms! But still I would long for a cloud or two in the blue sky sometimes.

Don Gray said...

Lu, you're most kind--thanks!

Don Gray said...

So you're one of those "escapist" snowbirds, eh Mary? :^) Well I don't blame you.

Thanks for the encouraging words.

Don Gray said...

"Daily Man of the west"...it has a ring to it, Redchair! Thanks for the invite to your "private" club--sounds scary but intriguing--gotta check it out.

martha miller said...

i love winter, too, don. and spring is all the more miraculous after a long cold winter spent!
your watercolors are spectacular. this one in particular - such a beauty! the lucky one who snatched this one right up!!!

Don Gray said...

Hi Martha,

I have no complaints whatsoever...I saw your thermometer! I know those temps are a piece of cake for you tough Maine types! :) Those are absolutely beautiful photos you took, but I won't be sitting down for tea anytime soon!

Thanks for the encouraging words.

artistbarb said...

Indulge me in a poem I taught my second graders.........

Snow makes whiteness where it falls...The bushes look like popcorn balls..And places where I used to play...Look like somewhere else today.

Thanks, Don. Barb

Don Gray said...

That's great, Barb. Expresses a lot in a few words, doesn't it?

Thanks for sharing that.