New Work: Time on The Putah

Time On The Putah
acrylic on wc paper image size 10.5" x 13.5" matted to 14" x 18"

My recent trip to UC Davis keeps on giving! Walking around the campus on the Arboretum Trail was very inspiring. I took lots of photos for reference and generally soaked up the atmosphere. I made a few sketches as well and noted some colors. Places like this one, with water and creek banks and trees really are alluring. An Internet search turned up lots of information on Putah Creek. I am learning that the fragmentation of this waterway over time and the re mapping of its flow is very typical of water sources here in CA. The hierarchy of water management is also interesting in that I am turning up information on lots of irrigation districts in our state. They are part of the structure of resource management. 

From an art related standpoint, I wanted to work with a different section of the color wheel for this piece. I thought blues, greens and purples would help me to convey some coolness and some warmth all at once without being super obvious. This end of the spectrum is challenging for me because of its duality of temperature. Is purple warm or cool? what is it next to? Is that blue green cooler or warmer because it is more green than blue? Perception of hue itself is challenging but throw in temperature on top of that and a person can feel confounded. Ultimately what matters the most to me is that I got the idea that I wanted.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend. Thanks for reading and commenting.

Libby