taos mountain presence
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taos mountain presence
by dawn chandler
A view that always draws me in — Taos Mountain from Kit Carson Road/Hwy 64, just east of town. I used to drive past this view nearly every day. I couldn't tell you how many times I've pulled over to photograph it. Yet I struggle to get a good photo worthy of a painting.
Finally in May 2019, when I was in Taos for a poetry workshop, I got it. The clouds were lovely and the landscape was greening up such that it was a patchwork of both muted and bright colors. Really, I think it's the muted colors that make this painting sing. That, and I really took my time with the shadows on Taos Mountain; I think those shadows help express the sense of distance. Yet none of it is caught up too much in the details. If only all my paintings turned out so well!