PleinAir Magazine – August 2019

34 August-September 2019 / http://www.outdoorpainter.com

justto getdownthecolorsI wasexperiencing.The
yellows,golds,andorangeswereso intensethey
madethegreenof thegrasseslookso cool.”
Incontrast,Rabbitbrushin Shadow,June
LakeLoopis a gray-daypaintingbasedona
complementarypaletteof yellowandviolet.It was
paintedduringthatsameexcursion,butunder
dark,leadenskieswithonlyanoccasionalspot
of sunlightshiningthrough.Lordierexplains,
“Thispieceis aboutcolorexploration.WhatI
loveaboutpaintingoutdoorsona graydayis that
I gettheopportunityto paintlocalcolorsthat
areso richbecausethesun’snotbleachingthem
out.Yetbyplacinga littlebitof sunlightbehind
therabbitbrush,I couldhighlight the thing that
interested me the most.”

FINDINGHERSPOT

“Itwasa peaceful,gorgeousdayat anamaz-

ingspotalongtheMercedRiverinYosemite.

I’mtrulythankfulforthosepreciousmoments

whenI’mstandingina placeenvelopedbyso

muchbeauty.Myphotosnevercaptureallthe

subtlecolors,values,andtemperaturesthatthe

eyesees—subtletieslikeinCathedralRocks,

Yosemite, wherethedeciduoustreestakeona

littlebitofpurple,orthewarmreddish-browns

standoutamidstthegreensoftheconifers,

orallthosecolorharmoniesplayoutinthe

canyonwallsandthesnow.I trytocapture

asmuchaspossibleofthesubtletyofcolor

andqualityoflightI’mexperiencingduring

those moments. For me, working from life is

information-gathering,andit’saboutmyreac-

tiontowhatI’mseeing.”

Sheadds,“Onthesametrip,mysister-in-law

andI weregoingto paintin a canyonwhereclouds

wouldgobyandthesunwouldlightupparticular

areas.I knewI wanteda starof theshow,a distinc-

tivecenterof interest.AsI waswalkingaround,

I foundmyspotwhenthelightmomentarily

presenteditselfas anideaforTheRiverof Mercy,

Yosemite. I dothinkit’simportantto formulate

anideaaboutwhatyouwantto say.Ina lotof my

work,I’mjustlookingforgestureandmovement.

“Generally,myintentionis tomakeinterest-

ingmark-making,withonebeautifulcolornote

nexttoanother.Tokeepthingsfresh,I trytoget

to the story as quickly as possible, usually within

FreshBeauty,ElkhornSlough

2018,pastel, 12 x 12in.

Privatecollection

Plein air