I’ve been waiting for an opportunity to do this hill and Saturday morning was it. This view caught my eye as I looked for a place to park close to where we’d previously decided to paint. I’ve known and loved that wooded area on the hill since I was little. I think of it as a copse – a small group of trees. When I was a kid, my sister or friends sometimes rode our horses through the field behind that copse where there was a pathway to use as a shortcut to get to Northfield Rd. There was risk involved in that if King Irving had his cows in the field we needed to cross, we weren’t allowed to go through. And then we had to go all the way back and all the way around, on the route we’d hoped to short-cut.
It was a dazzling morning on the edge of an apple orchard, sunny but not too hot, with much to enjoy. The golden or red apples on the trees were sparkling and colorful, the leaves on the trees turning olive and rustling in the breeze. Before the others arrived I saw 3 bluebirds and many swallows. While we painted, 4 or 5 hawks drifted overhead. And the ubiquitous crows throughout. I enjoyed the camaraderie of painting with J and D, watching hawks, telling stories, being read-to by J from a book of quotes by William Hunt, a famous teacher of the Barbizon School (outside Paris, ca 1830-1870) where the artists all painted outside way before the Impressionists.
I’m happy with my painting from 9/11/10, have decided to leave it alone. I hope J and D are happy with theirs. To me, it was a good experience and a good memory.
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