An Artists Journey Into The Mountains

It's crucial to allow time off from your studio work to look for subject matter to paint. Making this effort to go out and find this material is not only critical for the artist, but also very rewarding and necessary to fully understand the information you're about to put on your paper or canvas. The images below were taken in the South Cumberland State Park, Monteagle, TN on September 17, 2017 in preparation for my next series of paintings titled American Parks. It was my second trip there in two weeks and over 300 pictures were taken on this day alone. Most will never make it to the canvas and the ones that do will probably have some alterations made on them to fit to my liking. I can't stress the importance to all artists at any levels - venturing out of the studio is imperative and not to be overlooked. There's nothing more confirming in your life than looking in front of you and seeing nature in it's glory. Here is a beautiful quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson, "Never lose an opportunity of seeing anything beautiful, for beauty is God's handwriting". These few words speak very loudly to me and taking those steps into the mountains isn't about seeking new landscapes but in having fresh eyes to see them.