Winter Reflections - Continued

This tree has been staring at me for over a week. I just couldn't figure out how the branches interweaved and I wasn't quite sure how to continue. Well today, I must have been in the right mindset because in about 3 hours here is the result.... I have actually signed this piece but I will let it sit for a while and see if anything else needs to be adjusted. The contrast between this bold and expressive tree and the subtle barn is striking.

I'm finally working on the tree! Now I am just trying to figure out those branches going every which way!

Here is an update...slowly working through the face of the barn and the tree shadows.


Well, I finally got into the "feeling" of the shadows. It took me a bit of experimenting to figure out just how to work with the shadows. I am lightly layering using 2H, blending with a tortillion and then layering with a 7H to get a smooth finish. I am making sure that the horizontal boards of the barn are passing through the shadows.

My Studio!

I am so excited! With the purchase of a new printer and a used drafting table (and with permission from my husband), I have changed one of the rooms in our house into a studio! I am so proud of it, I just wanted to share with everyone! You can see one of our cats , Copper, making himself comfortable on my chair!

Winter Reflections

This indeed has become a challenging drawing! I have decided that I need to take the sky at least three shades darker. This will allow me to have a wider tonal range available to work with on the white face of the barn. My reference photo is also lacking details of the barn boards that I would love to see. It would be tempting to drive the 2 hours to just take some more photos, but that won't happen anytime soon. So I will have to use some creative artist license to create the details. This barn is a bit unusual for this area because the boards run horizontal not vertical, also the boards are very thin.


I have cropped the image so the composition will be a balanced and centered barn on the page. This drawing will have several challenges in that the tonal ranges will need to be even and balanced to create the illusion of a white barn. Also the tree reflection cannot be the primary subject matter but taking it's place as a secondary shadow across the face of the barn. The shadow cannot take on a texture or dimensionality of it's own.


I have been eyeing this barn for a number of years. But during a recent trip to NE Iowa I captured this photo with a beautiful new layer of snow and wonderful tree reflections dancing across the face of this barn. It is located just east of Gladbrook, Iowa.