The Wood Pile

Acrylic on 9x12 canvas sheet

Available through DPW gallery/auction

Winters in upstate NY can be very cold, and snowy, and did I mention cold? 20 degrees below zero is not unheard of - and I know there are probably colder spots in the USA, but let's face it, anything below zero is COLD!

We own a wood burning stove - let me rephrase that, everyone owns a wood burning stove up here in the country. Without it, you would need deep pockets to pay your heating costs. Some folks rely totally on wood burning for heat, others, like us, offset the heating costs with the wood burning stove. 

I have a  new found respect for chain saws, log splitters & work gloves. These 3 items are essential to country living, if you are going to harvest, collect, purchase, store & basically use wood to heat with. Trees that fall on their own, or are taken down for any one of numerous reasons, need to be cut into usable sizes. Split (so the wood dries) then stacked (so it has air to further dry and to make it accessible during winter months) - all this work, and it is work, is necessary. 

This particular woodpile was part of a cord of wood we ordered one year. It could not be stacked in it's proper place until the wood that was in that spot was moved indoors to the basement (wood stacking is an art, and should have its own medal at the olympics!). We moved it off to one side, between 2 trees, as it's temporary spot - and I liked the scene so much, that I decided to paint it.

This is one of my few plein aire paintings (I don't find the quick drying time of acrylics very useful in outdoor painting locations). I had to work fast, as the greens were drying on me before I could do any blending. But I really do like the effect on this, and the tree bark. I may have to do a bit more of these - I think a cord of wood is slated for delivery soon, might be time to do another!