Good Morning and Stretch!

My pastel class with Linda Packard might not be in the morning but it will stretch you. I love how Linda has given me new ways to think about my paintings. I paint landscapes most of the time and I wanted to paint them in a totally different way...even abstractly. This is a monumental jump for me. Most of my paintings are scenes that capture my interest for one reason of another and painted in traditional ways all while giving them my personal interpretation.
This weeks challenge was to go outside of my safety zone and head for the 'totally different'. Within this learning curve is a process that examines the core of the artist and through this challenge the first lesson is to LEARN. Well, that is an understatement. Learn I did. I began to examine the landscape through different eyes, looking not for the mundane but looking for the spark that will ignite the painting. This spark might be in the approach or even just simplifying the scene.  This can be accomplished with color, application, composition and design.  I must say it is a lot to take in and isn't as easy as it sounds, albeit the big stretch.
I am posting the painting "as is" without the changes. I will post it again later with the changes. See how you like it.

Old County Rd  by S.G.Roberts