Carpe Diem

I had an experience lately that underscores an important lesson about painting from direct observation (that is, painting from life, or painting en plein air). The lesson is that you can't ever plan on returning to the same subject
and finding it unchanged. We all know that atmospheric conditions will constantly change--morning, afternoon, humid, clear, overcast, etc. But I learned the hard way that the entire subject can be altered dramatically. 

"Victorian on Cleveland"
10 x 10, oil on linen
(c) Lesley Powell 2014

The top photo shows a lovely old Victorian house near my studio. I painted it earlier this year, and wrote about it in this blog. I loved my plein air painting (above), and decided to return to the scene and paint it again, in a different format. What to my wondering eyes should appear, not the old Victorian of my earlier painting, but a house that was painted the most unappealing minty green color! And the front hedge had been chopped down! And the crepe myrtle trees had been butchered! See below.

I had a similar experience this summer. Last year, I spotted a tumbling down old house in the mountains that just begged me to paint it. But alas, I didn't have time on that trip. I made do with a photo to remember the house and the location (below). When I returned this summer, at just the right time of day to start my painting, I was dismayed to discover that it was gone. Yes, GONE! The house had fallen completely down, and nothing remained but a pile of rubble. I didn't even take a photo of it, I was so downhearted.

As with so many painting stories, there is a life lesson here. Seize the moment, for you might not pass this way again!