the very large triptych, part 4 ~ experiencing the sky

I was worried about clouds: I needed clouds to pull off the Very Large Triptych.

But clouds were no guarantee. Just the year before, the only clouds over New Mexico from April to June were smoke clouds. And the year before that, our traditional summer rains never developed. I’ve lived in New Mexico for 30 years.* When I think of beautiful Land of Enchantment clouds and skies, I think of summer. True, we get colorful skies throughout the year. But when I think magnificent Land of Enchantment cloud formations, I think summertime. I don’t think of spring.

So you better believe it was a powerful good omen when, on April 26 — the day RAS and I were to sign our Very Large Triptych commission agreement — the sky filled with gorgeous clouds.** And when a rare spring rainbow appeared later that day? Talk about auspicious!

From late April through mid-July I made over a dozen trips to RAS’s roof. Come many a late afternoon, if I saw clouds developing, I’d throw together a picnic supper, grab my camera, and drive out there to sit on the roof.

Sometimes the clouds proved disappointing. Yet it was still a joy to sit out there under the New Mexico sky with nothing to do but gaze. Ravens and crows cawed all around me. Several resident ducks flapped and swam in a nearby pond. Somewhere out there was a Pied-billed Grebe.

Most of my excursions were in the evening. Twice though I drove out for sunrise. What a delight to welcome the day with a thermos of tea in one hand, my camera in the other.

One evening stands out: The night I was dive-bombed by marauding nighthawks. Swooping in graceful arcs against a dramatic sunset sky, it was all I could do to try to capture those “bullbats” with my camera. Alas, my camera skills are poor, but those aerobatic soarers are forever etched in my mind’s eye.

Firmly in Phase One of the project, my focus — as planned — was on photography. Yet I was itching to wet a brush. So I continued the tradition I’d begun on April 1 at the Caja. Take photos in the evening, then follow-up by jotting notes and painting watercolors in my triptych journal:

To further acquaint my Muse with composing landscape in a very W I D E horizontal format, I played around with painting small (5″ x 20″) and quick study landscapes. These did in acrylic on Multimedia ArtBoard, proportionate to the overall Very Large Triptych:

Meanwhile I was busy gauging and ordering supplies: Quantities of oil paint, two additional easels, and three top-of-the-line custom canvases. After contemplating my space for several months, I realized that the best space in my home to paint the Very Large Triptych was my living room. It simply has better light and more space (at least it would once I moved most of its furnishings into my studio…). Huge sheets of cardboard and rolls of duct tape were added to my shopping list, so as to protect the living room floor.

Now was the time, too, to prep panels for Phase Two (creating oil studies based on the photos). Fortunately My Good Man (a soon to be world class master woodworker) had recently graduated from an Intro to Woodworking class and had access to power tools. I told him what I needed and a few days later he, like the prince that he is, delivered a load of beautiful clean cut boards to me.

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*Wow! Has it really been that long?!
** Incredibly we had lots and lots of clouds last spring, for 2023 was one of the wettest springs in memory. Unfortunately, it was followed by one of the driest summers in memory: monsoon season — which usually lasts several weeks — lasted exactly one day in my neighborhood (a Tuesday).

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This is part four 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
the very large triptych, part eight ~ delivery & installation

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