I have begun the third in a series of abstract tree paintings: a madrone my favorite tree colors. I broke with my usual process and chose the main symbol before I started. Browns are my first focus of color harmony. I added copper in a reddish tone to highlight the sunlight filtering through the leaves.
Once I had made this much progress I went out to take photos of madrones to help with color choices. There are many times during a painting that I wonder how I will ever balance the color choices to satisfy my need for harmony.
