This was a case of a painting dictating what is was to be, against my efforts to make it otherwise.
This new 24″ by 24″ canvas grew slowly and once I was painting in the sky I kept telling myself that it had to be lighter and lighter. Since 2002 when I was featuring paintings that featured darker tones (referred to as my “dark work“), I have resisted working in this series. That work was not as well received as most of my work and I was responding to the market. Personally, I felt that this was very strong work, work that excited my sensibilities. But if they had no place in the galleries, I was hesitant to spend my time on the work.
So when I was in the midst of this piece I began to naturally steer away from the darkness that marked these earlier works. I saw the sky as being brighter and having high contrast but with each stroke there was a nagging feeling that that was not what was meant for this piece. I went so far as to load my palette with lighter colors and stand, brush in hand, before the canvas, ready to change this painting in a way that would alter everything about it.
But there was something that told me to stop, that this was where the sky stopped, that this was the destination. This was what this piece was meant to be. I stepped back and put down the palette. It would stay dark.
Now, maybe this will not fit into the marketplace for my work but that doesn’t matter. When I look at this piece, that is the last thing in my mind. I am immediately pulled into the picture plane and upward, over the knolls, toward the top of the rise where the sun/moon hovers, urging me to continue climbing. It is complete and has its own life, its own momentum. It is what it is and that is beyond me now.
Redtree Times 
What’s funny is that I don’t see the painting as dark at all. It seems suffused with light – but that’s because I see that orb in the sky as the moon.
The light reflected back from the hills and houses is so reminiscent of the light from a full moon. I never appreciated how much light the moon casts until I made my way to the back country, or the sea. On the darkest night, even the stars can provide enough light for shadows.
I agree with you about the painting seeming suffused with light in the color. It just doesn’t have the big swing in contrast from light to dark that marks much of my work, instead leaning more to the darker shades.
I’ve always admired the “dark” energy that underlies this series of work – as compared to Best Case Scenario, which I enjoy for different reasons, a similar arrangement of elements sets a lighter mood
That’s an interesting and astute comparison between the *dark work* and*Best Case Scenario *. There is a similarity in the structure of the pieces but the handling of each makes them very different paintings, with different moods.
Reminds me of the full moon setting at a winter’s morning dawn.
I often see the moon setting behind the forest at dawn, much like this piece. Maybe you’re on to something.