First, I am not at all sure where I found the photograph upon which this painting is based – public domain? If not, and it is yours, I am sorry I cannot give you credit. Let me know, ok?
Oil paints on Canson Oil/Acrylic paper.
Initially I started out with a brush and soon realized that whatever I tried to paint was just not working. The grasses were not clear and sharp and the clouds were blobby. In the end, and out of frustration, I took a palette knife and used it to smear color into the painting – and all of a sudden I found out what painting in oils with a palette knife is capable of doing.
I am prejudiced against heavy impasto just because I don’t find it interesting to look at. First in my mind is how much dust it could collect and what a pain heavy impasto paintings could be to clean. Much impasto is done with a knife – though brushes also do the job, as seen in the work of van Gogh. So, I have avoided it to date.
Smearing paint around with a knife gives some dimension (3D) on a flat surface, but the way the paint moves is so interesting! I also used the knife tip to scratch away in the colors for the grasses, and that was both doing what I wanted to do, as well as somehow felt deliciously rebellious against my conformist self.
The snow, though, and the river, are done with brush. Brushwork was laid down first pretty much throughout the painting, and my aggravation then brought out the knife. Learning experience. And, I don’t think I could have rendered either sky or grasses anywhere to my liking with a brush of any size.
Live and learn.
11×14, knife and brush, on paper.
Ink, Yarn & Beer 
I like this! It reminds me of an area off I80 going towards Truckee.
Good work!
Thanks, Fraggy!
Thanks, Anne! I have driven by / through Truckee, but never in the winter seasons. Too scary for me – I always think of the Donner Party when I am up that way.
Too bad. That area is beautiful when covered in snow. What’s great is that you can turn around and go home where there is no snow!
Yeah, too bad! You are right – good to visit, and go home. A friend of mine was stuck up in Mammoth for a week after a blizzard – so much snow, and driving home, the sides of the freeway were snow walls several feet tall. At least we have the equipment for clearing it. When it snows in Seattle the entire system fails to function – not used to snow.
California is way ahead in so many areas. I suppose we’d be the same way if we didn’t get snow in our mountains.
I agree with you there – but even here in SoCal we would have problems – most likely the drivers being idiots!
OMG So Cal drivers are great compared to No Cal. When we lived in San Jose I was rear ended so many times. Last Aug I was rear ended by a big truck. I don’t think any of it was my fault since I was stopped for a reason.