Sumac, billboard moonscape

The other day I noticed a nook of grass and sumac trees along Upper Lachine road, with a view of the Decarie and st Jacques bridge in the background. I walked up into the area with my bike and did this painting looking south. To make the sumac colour, its mostly yellow ochre (PY43), mixed perylene maroon (PR179). Once I practiced a few of them, I could make the sumac shape with one press of a small #2 brush. My brushes are getting pretty beat up by now, winter is always hard on the brushes. 

Sumacs Decarie, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, April 2026 

Last year, I did some painting in an empty lot along st Jacques street and wondered if there would be a renaturalization effort by the city. Today I saw that the entire lot had been leveled and covered in gravel, packed down. It looks more like a development, although being so close to the escarpment, considering its probably landfill, I wonder if they are even allowed to build condos here. Still hoping for that re-naturalization project. The scene was a moonscape, complete with PJD 26 billboard. 

Billboard moonscape, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, April 2026