Crimson Fog by Gord Jones

This painting by Gord Jones captured my attention after it appeared on The Portrait's Facebook page.

Gord takes us to a day when nature hangs in a balance.

Follow me and you will see what I mean.  There is a soft fog which hangs in the background.. The white cerulean blue sky, softly melds into the background hills and with the line of  line of forest which horizontally reaches  into the middle of the work. The tonal mid values of the crimson forest then drops down to what appears to be a broad expanse of reeds and the slightly blurred background  gives way to the more clearly defined woods and pine tree on the left.

As we move towards the foreground we find some strong contrasting values. The darkness of the tree and the dark blue ice contrasts strikingly with the white snow, and the soft edges contrast with the hard edges and sharp angles of the snow banks.

There is also a delightful sense of motion as the viewer takes a playful, meandering journey which is punctuated by snowbanks and drifts.

This is a good example of how a minimal palette of what appears to be muted sap green, raw sienna, possibly yellow ochre, variant blue hues and a touch of crimson is enough to do the job. Anything more would be distractive.

Notice how Gord uses a vertical drift of wind borne snow which points towards the middle of his painting to create a sense of distance and direction.

Its all so perfectly done.  This is one of a winter series of paintings found on Gord's website. Please click here.

Artist's Comments

My source for all my work is either a photo I took myself, or a plein air session. This painting was from a photo. I'm attracted to the natural landscapes of the Haliburton area where I've cottaged for many years. Winter, is probably my most inspirational season.  I like contrast, and the quiet solitude of winter is attractive to me in comparison to the busy summer vacation time.

I  don't really know what else to add except that I am pleased to know that this painting seems to have connected with another artist (you). I appreciate that.