Sunday, November 21, 2010

Swan Lake, Copenhagen, Denmark


We took a detour from Sweden going down to Copenhagen by train, only 3.5 hours or so, there is this new bridge that goes across the sea. This scene was near our hotel, it is not really a lake, it is an old defensive water system that was turned into a kind of park, all around the water is a nice jogging trail, benches, and cafes. There were a lot of swans and seagulls in the water, probably because people were feeding them. The weather was very cold this day, a bitter wind gusting and low sun making it even colder.

There is always a balance between painting exactly what you see, and painting more or less what you feel. This brings in the concept of the 'artistic license'....the unofficial license that all artists are entitled to, to basically change things. I wont even say what I changed in this painting, other than to say that I wanted the scene to look cold, but feel warm. Ok, one little thing, I did omit several lamp posts from the bridge, it would have been to tough to paint them in there. This painting is also a good example of how to create the appearance of detail, the windows and roofs are done in a minimal way but the overall feel of the architecture still feels detailed and genuine.

7.5x11" cold press

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