the very large triptych, part 7 ~ the big reveal

Let’s step back for a moment.

Recall the study paintings; I never revealed which one RAS chose.

In the photo below, the studies are numbered and were painted in chronological order:
1 – late April sunset over the Jemez
2 – mid May sunset over the Jemez
3 – late June sunset over the Jemez (the evening of the nighthawks)
4 – same June evening as 3, a little bit later
5 – early July sunset (“paella night“) over the Jemez
6 – mid July sunrise over the Sangre de Cristos
7 – same July morning as 6, about an hour later, looking west toward the Jemez

All along I think we all had in mind a sunset or late afternoon view for the Very Large Triptych. Yet as we narrowed down the selection, several of the evening scenes felt a bit too dramatic. While awe-some, there was concern that, say, number 5 (paella night) might overwhelm the room. And more than anything, RAS desired at view that felt calm and peaceful.

After much consideration and conversation we narrowed it down to two. A bit to everyone’s surprise they were the morning views — the last two studies I’d painted. In fact, they were still wet.

Of the two, we were leaning toward #7, for those puffy white clouds, blue sky and sage- and pinon-dotted hills seemed so quintessentially “New Mexico.” The painting just seemed to invite you to enter it and explore.

Yet when I Photoshopped the two onto the living room wall, the choice was clear. I remember feeling a mix of excitement and dread as I thought to myself GREAT… of the seven studies, we’re going with the most challenging sky to paint! Still, there was no doubt in my mind that we had made the right choice. Besides, stepping up to the daunting challenge seemed to be what this whole Very Large Triptych project was all about!

Here we go then.
Ready?

. . . . . .

At this point — mid December — I knew the Very Large Triptych was approaching completion. No one had seen it in person yet, but I wanted another set of artist eyes to take a look and make sure I wasn’t overlooking anything. So often when I’m really focused on painting I can become a bit blinded to what I’m working on. ‘Kind of like writing and not spotting an embarrassing typo until you hit Send. One of my biggest fears with the Very Large Triptych was that I would unwittingly paint brushstrokes in the shape of a face or body organ and not notice it until it was hanging on the wall. For this reason I had my longtime friend and fellow landscape painter Shawn come over and take a look. She was kind and generous in her praise (and Whew! saw no phalluses in the clouds!). The one tiny suggestion she offered was that I consider adding a bit of glazing to the large cloud formation just left of center. The moment she suggested it I knew it was a great idea.

A few days later — on the Solstice — I met RAS at their Las Campanas home. Not since my initial brushstrokes had they seen photos of it. Though it still wasn’t quite finished, I thought that before I put any more time into it I’d better make sure they were happy with it.

They were. Very much so.

In early January I made a few more tweaks: To add more visual interest to the foreground I painted in some smaller bushes. I then broke up some of the larger clouds and added a smattering of smaller ones. Finally I added a bit of glazing to the large cloud mass.

And then on January 18 a thought occurred to me:

It’s done.

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This is part seven of a several part series:

the very large triptych, part one ~ the request
the very large triptych, part two ~ the proposal
the very large triptych, part three ~ discovering the landscape
the very large triptych, part four ~ experiencing sky
the very large triptych, part five ~ painting the studies
the very large triptych, part six ~ new studio & first strokes
the very large triptych, part seven ~ the big reveal

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