A Table and Four Chairs in a Field

After the first attempt at this scene I went back to repeat the painting a few days later when the rain stopped. The table was upended with its top off, the chairs were upside down, and the objects were strewn about on the ground.  With some effort I was able to re-assemble the table, it was heavy, and arrange the chairs and objects roughly as they had been the last time. Midway through the painting a local fellow walked by and took one of the chairs away to sit on it, he then asked me if he would be in the painting. No, I replied it was too late this time I had already started the painting. Compared to the first attempt, this one is on a larger piece of paper and shows more of the chairs and field. The background elements are much lighter in value and orange was emphasized throughout. I noticed that there was a small camping tent back in the woods that you can notice in the top right. The table's angle was tilted to create a rotational composition, and to better show off the objects on the table which included an empty sangria bottle, a rusted enamel bowl, tuna can ashtrays and an empty pack of cigarettes. A few of my students recently gave me a book on Cezanne and he would also tilt the angle of the tables to show the objects. In doing so, he created a surrealistic atmosphere. That idea seemed appropriate for a painting of a table and four chairs in a field.

A Table and Four Chairs in a Field, watercolour 8 x 10" Strathmore Gemini, September 2022 (No. 3332)