JUDY LARKINS
Capturing and Crafting Winterscapes
A
stark winter scene may first appear to the eye as dull and dreary. Shades of gray, brown, and white, with subtle hints of blue and dark green, can make a winter landscape feel lackluster. Distant. Uninviting. Some artists are especially prolific this time of year, having developed a number of techniques to capture bland winter subjects and transform them into alluring works of art. CML recently spoke with local artists David Thompson and Judy Larkins to find out how they draw inspiration from “cold” subjects, and achieve mastery in portraying local winterscapes as full of color, texture and breathtaking beauty.
46——Winter Winter2020/21 2020/21CAROLINA CAROLINAMOUNTAIN MOUNTAINLIFE LIFE
CML: What do you love most about the season, and what does the winter mean to you? Judy: I grew up near Vaughn Woods in Maine, and spent winter weekends out in the snow, either sledding, skiing, or walking in the woods with my family. Winter in the NC mountains means forest hikes, and cross country skiing on the Parkway and Roan Mountain after beautiful snowfalls. I love the covering of snow on trees and trails, and the quietness—I like to be the first to hike a snow covered trail. David: I’m a native of Ontario, Canada, so cold, snowy days are fun for me. The sting of wind wakes up my creative juices. CML: As an artist, how does capturing winter scenery vary from other seasons, and what winter subjects inspire you most? Judy: All of western NC is inspiring to me in all seasons, but the snow scenes are fun to create, especially snow covered trees and trails. David: Light and shadow relationships become more dramatic with the winter season’s paintings. The direction of light
is more on an angle. Snow texture and movement is fun to create and experience. Capturing winter scenes compared to other seasons involves cooler colors. And, best of all, you don’t have to paint leaves. Leaves can be a real pain. As far as winter subjects, anything along the Blue Ridge Parkway, around and up on Grandfather Mountain, and lots and lots of trees. Around 4:30 in the afternoon is a great time to sketch and plan paintings. The sun cuts through the trees producing strong value changes and movement. CML: What is your process for “painting winter”? Judy: My process is mixing oil paint with cold wax, which makes a frosting like mixture that glides over the dark underpainting on a wood gessoed panel— this brings out patterns that remind me of winterscapes, and I work with scrapers, not brushes, until they say what my intentions are. There is both spontaneity and control, but keeping in mind contrasts in shape, value changes, texture and composition. I do not paint from a photo, but from how
