In case you haven’t noticed, Three Ridges is a favorite subject of mine.  It looms next to Wintergreen, which is actually atop a peak called Devil’s Knob.  If I go just up the street from our house to the Devil’s Knob Overlook, which is close to the highest point in Wintergreen, I have a fabulous and ever changing view of Three Ridges.  It makes a wonderful subject because it’s familiar and comfortable but different in every photograph I take of it, and I take a lot.

I just finished a painting inspired by a photograph I stopped and took one morning in mid-January when I arrived.  The clouds were lying heavy in the valleys and the peaks were above them.  There was another layer of cloud above and a strip of colorful sky from the morning sun, which had been up for a while but was fighting the clouds.  Below is the painting, followed by the photograph that inspired it. The painting is 36×18 oil on canvas.

I’m sure you haven’t seen the last of Three Ridges.  I have many more inspirational photographs.  I’ve painted in in the Spring, Fall and Winter. I’m still searching for the perfect Summer view. Maybe when the weather breaks I’ll try my hand at a plein aire.