Bright Spots (Sunset, Monday, 27 June 2011)
William Theodore Van Doren, BRIGHT SPOTS (Sunset/Twilight from Stony Point, Albemarle County, Va.) Oil on watercolor block, 13 x 19.
It’s possible that an ancient tube of slightly separated zinc white – the only white I had left – was responsible for the thin, almost rubbed texture of this painting, but whatever it was, it seemed to work for this particular sky.








Not Entirely Forgotten (Sunset, Tuesday, 28 June 2011)
After five hours of storms, the clouds had an after-party, and went through a dizzying array of changes. At times the sky looked like a Turner, then like a Tiepolo, then there was a curious green layer of cloud, and what had been gold turned orange-pink. At some point I had to give up trying to absorb it all – try to forget and just paint.