Practicing the 'What If' Attitude

'Flowers by the Roadside'           8x 7 3/4"         pastel       ©Karen Margulis
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I took the day off yesterday and took a drive up to Lake Hiawassee in North Carolina. Michael and I took the dog and planned to stop at my moms to meet her new dog Harry before heading to the lake.  As we turned onto Highway 64 near my mom's place I remembered that one summer the medians were full of wildflowers.  That was several years ago and I had not seen them since. They seem to feel the need to mow them down so I always miss them.

I was excited to see that the medians had not been mowed yet. And there were a few sprinkles of wildflowers. As we got closer the amount of flowers increased until this glorious spot appeared....a section of the median just filled with wildflowers. It was overcast and the reds and pinks and purples were so vibrant. But....I had forgotten my camera.  My phone came to the rescue and my husband let me out while he circled around.  I took as many photos as I could while the cars rushed past. When Michael came back around I jumped in the car and we were off.  I am so happy I got to see the flowers this year!  Today's post shows my first painting. There will be many!

a work in progress that I chose to rework

 I looked at this little painting I had been working on. I wasn't really happy with it. But as I was walking past it it jumped out at me and I wondered "What if"  I used it as the underpainting for my first roadside wildflower painting?  So I pulled up a photo and got to work.  I didn't have to do much to it to make it match my vision.  I asked myself a series of what if questions....what if the sky was a different color...yellow. What is I changed the shape of the trees and added another bush for balance? What if I darkened  the foreground so the flowers would show up? As I asked myself the questions, I would try the suggestions and they helped guide me through the recreation of this painting.

To read more about the 'What if' attitude read my post here

reference photo from the highway median

My dog Heidi (the blond) and her cousins Harry, Haley and Hanna at the lake