Reflection on my time in Central Australia. See my previous post.
From my time painting the landscape en plein air I came home with a few smaller pieces that I then extended into some works on paper. Mostly ink and water colour on cotton rag, There is so much to take in when you are in this environment.
The shapes and size of the rocks and their shadows. Violet, Sienna, ochre.
The textures and tones of the bark on the limbs of the eucalyptus and mulga trees. The closer you are to them, the more alive they appear.
The feeling of sand under your feet and long grass against your legs. It is a daunting landscape, one that will polarise your emotions.
The morning’s clarity and silence. The heat and noise of the burning day. The calmness and sometimes formidable atmosphere as the night turns black.
I feel the need to break it down into a simplistic image that has space in order to highlight the individual elements.
This last image above is only about 1/3 of the painting.