Hot TownI!

"Uptown Silhouettes"
8 x 8, oil on linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2018
(SOLD)

I don't know about your locale, but mine has been suffering unbearable heat and humidity over the past few weeks. The sixties song "Hot Town, Summer in the City" (remember the Lovin' Spoonful?!) keeps running through my head! Along those lines, I just delivered a new series of paintings to Shain Gallery in Charlotte--urban landscapes, featuring the skyline of Charlotte. 

Lesley at work along the Light Rail

The paintings were actually painted earlier this year, before the extreme heat set in. My studio is near the light rail line that runs from south Charlotte to Uptown. There is a wide walking and biking trail alongside the rail line, which provides a great place to stand, with a fine view of Uptown. Just above is a shot of me at work there, and below is the finished painting. I love this scene, because it shows both the
smokestacks of the old mill buildings and the skyscrapers of the new, banking oriented Uptown. I like the shapes of color--but I also like the story it tells of the evolution of Charlotte.

"Atherton Mill"
9 x 12, oil on linen panel
(c) Lesley Powell 2018
Available at Shain Gallery

I painted in this location for a number of days. Some days were bright and clear, and the colors were quite vivid. Other days were hazier, and the distant silhouettes of the skyscrapers seemed to fade into the sky.  It can be tricky to create 3D space on a flat surface, but that's one sign of a successful painting. I enjoyed the challenge of pushing the Uptown buildings back into the distance--back, back, back--using hue, value and perspective. 

"Uptown Silhouettes III"
18 x 18, oil on canvas
(c) Lesley Powell 2018
Available at Shain Gallery

In the blazing summer sun, it's too hot for me to stand for hours on the rail trail, painting. But you can be sure I'll be back out there in the fall, when temperatures permit! Meanwhile, enjoy these scenes from the spring...