I had a wonderful painting trip to Haliburton again this year. We rented a cottage in the old fashioned Chateau Woodlands Estates — more of a cabin, really. A 1950’s style resort. Easy access to many good painting locations, and I thought I would tell you about a few here.
Rocks and Rapids 1
One of the most gorgeous sites was at the Wildwater Reserve. This is a site for whitewater kayaking competitions, and the rapids were fierce and beautiful. We saw a number of talented kayakers navigating the water. Amazingly, they often waved at me! (I would not have thought they could take their eyes off for a moment!)
I love anything with wild roots and rocks, so this location had plenty of that to choose from. The water filled with bubbles was tremendously challenging to interpret.
The first day painting there I created the piece at the top of this post, called Rocks and Rapids 1.
We went back again another day, and I found a different vantage point. A bit more crowded with people, but one advantage of the rapids is that they create a tremendous amount of background noise, plus cool the air around you. Perfect conditions for painting on a hot day! You see I am well protected in the shade.
These are all acrylic paintings on panels, and will be posted to the galleries shortly. All are for sale, of course.
Two more paintings emerged that day. Rocks and Rapids 2, where I pulled out the bluish colors in the rocks and the red of the cedars on the far side of the river. These standing waves were the target for the best kayakers.
Rocks and Rapids 2
The next one, The Red Maples, drew on the color of the trunks of these young maples and the vibrant green of the grasses below. It’s a patch of calm beside all this wild water.
The Red Maples