When I go to Death Valley, if I’m not staying in Furnace Creek, most likely you’ll find me here. In Tecopa. At Amy’s Tecopa Hot Springs Resort. It’s where I’ve stayed for thirteen years. Always in the same room. It’s my home away from home.
This is a scene I see all the time, when the sun has just gone behind the mountains. It’s dusk, the sky lit up in peach and salmon, and the lights have turned on the sign for the night. Sometimes if I wake up during the night, I’ll step outside to view the stars, and if I turn to the left, I see Amy’s sign lit up. Warm breezes blowing. Sometimes it’s freezing and I’m shaking in my bathrobe and slippers, but I have to do it. I have to look at the night. Listening to the wind in the palm trees.
A big part of my desert experience is what goes on when the sun goes down and the Milky Way comes out. If the moon is strong it illuminates the landscape with an eerie, blue-green. I’ve long wanted to paint these things I see when the sun is gone, like in Desert Moonset with Headlights, a scene I’ve witnessed for years with the Ruan trucks driving up and down Highway 127 in the distance.
I plan on painting many more noctures in the desert. Because I like it.
Dusk at Amy’s
Oil on Canvas
14″ x 18″
Wow!
Beautifully written, beautifully pictured.
Thank you so much!
I love night paintings. Most art reflects life in daylight, but night offers lots of great opportunities, too, but it is seldom portrayed. I look forward to seeing what you create!
It’s something I’ve long wanted to do. I love Whistler’s nocturnes, Hopper’s night scenes in the city, and Eric Merrill’s desert night paintings with twisted Joshua trees. My favorite time of day is dusk, right before it goes completely dark, when large swaths of the landscape or garden are completely in shadow, with only a little highlighted, the sky is almost dark with stars coming out. Hands down, my favorite time. Second favorite is right before dawn.
If I can manage to figure out how to get that vibe in a painting or drawing, I’ll be supremely happy! I have a headlamp and clip on lights to put on my easel. But I need photo reference as well because the light goes quickly. It all becomes soooo subdued a dark and mysteriously yummy.
Maxfield Parrish painted evening light beautifully, moonlight, too. Definitely yummy!
Yes! I love Maxfield Parrish!