Scattered Leaves-A painting for friends

This is an original watercolor painting that was started while vacationing with friends in the Finger Lakes Region of New York State. Five couples, most of us friends since High School , decided to rent out an entire inn for a long weekend getaway. It was October, so the colors of the trees and the leaves laying on the ground were enough inspiration to start a painting. It became a game to see who could find the prettiest leaves for me. As we hiked through the beautiful Watkins Glen State Park, instead of looking at the waterfalls and gorges, I found myself scouring the ground for leaves!! By the time we returned to the inn and I got my paints out, I had all of the material I needed to create "Scattered Leaves".As I worked on the painting, my friends would come over and critic my work and ask questions. Not knowing the process of watercolor painting, some of them said "they don't look like leaves" or "the colors are too light". As the process continued, they realized the method to my madness and saw the painting come to life.

My friend Karen seem to fall in love with the painting as I worked on it. She said that she loved leaves and that the colors I was using would be perfect in their family room. I told her she could have it if I didn't proceed to mess it up before the painting was finished. After getting side tracked by a couple of art shows and the holidays, I finally completed the painting and gave it to Karen and her husband Tony on Super Bowl Sunday. We were with the same people we went to NY State with that day so it was very fitting that I gave it to them then. They told me they loved it and I believed them...Karen had that look in her eyes of someone who just received a special gift. It was a special gift to a special friend at a gathering of special people.