http://www.outdoorpainter.com / August-September 2019 33
INSPIRATIONALEXCURSIONS
“HereinCalifornia,becauseofa significant
amountofprecipitationthisspring,wehad
what’scalleda ‘superbloom.’I askedmy
momtojoinmefora visualfeastat Ante-
lopeValleyCaliforniaPoppyReserve—a
sitethat’sbeenonmybucketlistforyears,”
saysLordier.“Untilwearrived,I usedto
thinkthattheCaliforniaImpressionistswho
paintedat thelocation—luminarieslike
GranvilleRedmondandBenjaminCham-
bersBrown—addedmoreflowerstotheir
compositionsthanwereactuallythere.Nope!
It wasabsolutelyspectacular!Thehillswere
coveredwithswathsofCaliforniapoppies
andpurpleowl’scloverformiles.”
Theartistadeptlycapturesthatvastsplendor
of colorinTheHillsAreAlive. “I wantedto push
theideaof themovementof thecoolandwarm
colorsas theytravelbackintospace,as wellas
showhowthesagecoolsoffallthewarmcolors
back there. I also enjoyed the rare opportunity to
userawcadmiumorangeandcadmiumyellow
in a landscape.”
Twootherworkspaintedduringthatsame
excursion,CopadeOroin AntelopeValleyand
Bedeckedin Gold, arealsodesignedto focuson
effectsof atmosphericperspectiveuponintensely
vibrantcolor.Lordierdescribestheformer:“To
me,thispaintingis allaboutpatternandmove-
ment.I wascaptivatedbythepatternsof thesage
andpoppiesandI foundtheS-shapedmovement
of thearroyoso poetic.I’malwaysthinking
abouthowI wanttheviewerto movethrough
mypaintings.TheroadwayinBedeckedin Gold
beginsin themiddleareaat thebottom,sweeps
to theright,thenmovesbacktowardsthedistant,
highdesertvalley.Darkvaluesin theshadowon
thetreeat leftandthesaturationof thepoppies
bringsyoureyearoundagainto theforeground.”
Tosimplifythedesign,Lordiertookliber-
tieswiththeroad,whichshenoteshada yellow
dividerline.“I don’tfeelcompelledto include
things that may distract from the story I’minterestedin telling,”shestates.“ThoughI did
likethesubtletemperatureshiftsof thepavement
versusthesandyterrain.Thecloudswerecontrails
thatexpandedwhileI wasworking;I leftout
anyskinnyonesfromplanesthathadjustgone
overhead.”
Accomplishedduringa tripwitha painter
friendto theEasternSierraNevada,BishopCreek
Aspensis a pleinairpaintingthatinspiredtwo
largerstudioworks,includingAutumnFairies.
Lordierrecollects,“Wewalkedthroughanaspen
grovethatwaslikea fairyland.Wewerebathedin
a goldencolorthatwasso palpableI couldalmost
tasteit. Asastonishedas I felt,it wouldhavebeen
overwhelmingto stopandfigureouthowI could
tryto captureitsbeauty.Tokeepit simple,I went
to the edge of the grove by Bishop Creek, wantingCathedralRocks,Yosemite
2018,pastel, 11 x 14in.
Privatecollection
Plein air