“Snow is anything, but white,” says artist Stacey Peterson, “that’s why I love painting winter scenes so much.”
Peterson, a chemical engineer turned oil painter, explains that snow is the color of whatever light is bouncing off of it—reflection comes from the sky, trees or anything that is near. The contrast between cool shadows and warm sunlight is one of the things that excites her the most. It gives her landscape scenes a vibrancy and mood that would be hard to accomplish in summer paintings that don’t have all that light being reflected from the snow.
Peterson prefers to paint on location than from a photo. The upside is a work that gives you a more realistic feeling of what it’s like to actually be there, but there is a downside.
“You have to invent ways to keep warm and still have the dexterity to paint,” Peterson said. “I wear a pair of thin gloves, but put a heavy sock with a hole in it for my paintbrush over my hand.” To keep her feet warm, she carries a thick foam mat to stand on. “No matter what preparation is made beforehand you have to work fast. At about 15 (degrees) your paint starts to freeze, it gets stringy and your done.”
Peterson will have no problem painting this Saturday as she will be working in the warm Horton Fine Art Gallery in Beaver Creek from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
If you go …
What: Stacey Peterson painting winter scenes.
When: Saturday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Where: Horton Fine Arts in Beaver Creek.