Today's Irish themed painting comes from Dingle...such a beautiful place! It's the Conor Pass, the highest mountain pass in Ireland. The narrow, twisting road provides some of the most breathtaking scenery I have ever seen, and some of the most harrowing experiences I have ever had in a car!
Ireland's country roads are narrow to say the least. On the Conor Pass it's hard to concentrate on driving when the scenery around you is so magnificent. Oncoming cars and the odd sheep, or 2 or 20, are always obstacles to be on the lookout for.
This scene is based on a photo I took from part way up a mountain. We had parked the car and found a spot to hike to: a small pond situated on a flat area of the mountain. The mountain was all rocks, and rather slippery from a recent rain shower, but we made our way up to the level area. The pond was a huge disappointment. Boring. Then I turned around and saw this magnificent sight in front of me: sharp jagged peaks against the sky and huge clouds casting dramatic shadows across the mountains. The mountains stretched in front of us for what looked like miles. Small lakes dotted the landscape, and beyond that, the sea. I must have taken 2 dozen photos with my trusty iPhone (couldn't wrestle the camera away from Rich).
The painting wasn't done till about a year later. I was preparing to teach a pastel class and needed to get my skills up to par before my session started. I did most of the painting in the course of 2 or 3 hours. Found myself falling in love with pastel again. There is something about the immediate, intense dramatic colors which you are able to achieve with pastel that really excites me. And because the process is fast, you tend to stay fresh and loose.
I have a few other pastel paintings from the Conor Pass, but this is my favorite. And the Conor Pass and Dingle Peninsula were some of my favorite days in Ireland.
If this is your first visit to my artist blog and you like the Irish theme I am working with, you might want to take a look at some of the other posts from the last few days March 1 - 7. I have included links to 3 of the posts; you can access the others from any of the links below.
Joan Applebaum Art Goes Green - Steppin' Into March
Joan Applebaum Art Goes Green - Across the Miles
Joan Applebaum Art Goes Green - The Rising of the Moon
Today is day 8 of my blog "Going Green". I will be posting Irish themed paintings till March 17!
Stay tuned and
Slainte!
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