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| The Mountains are Silent as the Wind Howls The finished piece, revisited in 2025. 42 x 59.5 inches Acrylic on Canvas |
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| The Mountains are Silent as the Wind Howls |
My painting experience while painting the piece above depicts what feels common to today's current events. Chaos all around me. The wind is blustering my canvas, moving my supplies, tossing the pieces of wood I had stacked on the canvas edges. I reckon with it, giving my greatest retort and my warmest sweet talk. Nothing would be heard by the wind that day. It was all powerful. But, the strength of the mountains is silent; they are unshakable by anything the wind can blow their way. They are unmoved by anything I say to them like, "and you're just going to stand there with nothing to say while I'm getting tossed around here"? Ha! The mountains are silent as the wind howls, waiting for me to settle down and begin painting.
I was excited to get outside to the land to paint. My painting location was the old abandoned salt mine with a beloved view.
Mother Nature doesn’t comply with my wishes for a peaceful time. On this day, no amount of declaration, soothsaying, or bargaining worked. The mountains stood there in silence, expecting me to begin. The painting session was exhilarating, with billowing plastic and flying canvas edges. Giggles ensued while playing with the elements at work. Dust, dirt, weed particles, and salt become part of this painting.
The 60 x 60-inch unstretched canvas is an enormous size for a Plein air painting. I laid it on the ground to work. There were old timbers and pieces of wood lying around, so I grabbed them to secure the corners. I placed it on a hill so the angle would tilt. It was a next-to-impossible task to paint that day as the wind howled, scoffing at me as I worked to secure the painting. I figured out the general layout, and the desired composition of the land, painting as best I could.
I’ve been Plein air painting for years. The new way of painting Plein air began about five paintings ago. Now, besides the small-size stretched canvas, I work on large-size flat raw canvas, either placed on the floor or on the land instead of working on an easel.
There are places on this painting, which to me, depict ancient Native American stories. These came forth during the painting process, much to my surprise. The old salt mine served as a ritual site for Hopi Native Americans before people developed it into a mining operation. Please take time to tune into the energy of this painting. It will be satisfying.
I painted this piece four years ago, leaving the painting in its raw state. I revisited it to refine it from that first visit to the land.
I’m told my Plein air paintings capture the spirit of the location. I believe I captured the experience of being there with the fierce wind howling and blowing my canvas all over the place. It was an untamable moment. My artwork depicts the vibrant, untamed spirit hidden within the tranquil mountain landscape, a place whispering ancient stories. Some of those stories showed up in my painting.
