Authors do it all the time – give their favorite characters a different setting and situation with each new book. I’m thinking in particular of Agatha Christie and her Hercule Poirot and Miss Jane Marple characters.
The last few months I’ve been creating different compositions with the two aspen tree trunks I’ve installed under the skylights in my studio. I have photographed them from every side and angle and in different lighting and have used the photographs several times.
Aspen trees are very tall and the tops of them are out of the picture most of the time, so using these trunks works very well. In order to get some kind of foliage in the painting I have to use other trees and leaves behind and at the base of the trunks. I usually paint vine maples because the colorful leaves make a sharp contrast to the mostly white aspen trunks.
The painting below is my latest composition – “Mountain Aspens With Vine Maple Trees”, a 36″ x 48″ oil painting on canvas. I added some smaller trees and a mountain range in the background for greater depth.
