I know all of you must be getting into the Halloween spirit right about now, preparing your home for those little ghosts, zombies and witches when they appear at your front door tonight ………and you’re probably too busy to read this post ……anyway I decided to write about how my colour palette was influenced by the colours of this imminent festivity. These are the colours associated with the warm hues of the harvest contrasted against dramatic shades of black, blue-gray and brown – very appropriate for this time of year.
Silver Moon – 12×24 – Mixed Media – 2011- (Sold at Bird on a Wire, Vancouver B.C.)
Silver Moon -painted in washes of Carbon Black, Raw Umber, Payne’s Gray, Burnt Orange, Raw Sienna, Indian Red and -if you can pronounce this one correctly- Quinacridone Nickel Azo Gold- my new favourite! A touch of silver leaf in the Moon and the addition of the solitary crow perched high on the crooked branch evoke just enough mystery to this ethereal, semi- abstract landscape. My final layer on this painting is the addition of acrylic encaustic , a totally different animal than beeswax – however -you can achieve beautiful transparent and translucent drippy layers that simulate the seductive quality of encaustic without the fumes!
Speaking of “mystery and seduction”, as I was driving home the other night, “Witchy Woman” came on the radio, a song by the Eagles I hadn’t heard in a while….It’s a great song that really sets the mood for Halloween and that’s probably what the DJ was trying to do! Strangely enough, I find that these chilling lyrics relate well to my painting Silver Moon…
Witchy Woman
Raven hair
and ruby lips
Sparks fly from her fingertips
Echoed voices
in the night
She’s a restless spirit
on an endless flight
Wooo hooo witchy woman
See how high she flies
Woo hoo witchy woman
She got the moon in her eye
…..I suppose we’ve all met someone like this somewhere down the line…. mysterious…. mystifying…maybe even downright spooky?!
Happy and safe Halloween to all!
P.S.… watch out for those witchy women tonight!
lbagneresartblog 
The orientation of the canvas (is it canvas? I can almost see a wood grain) makes this entire painting so effective. The lone crow perched in isolation gives a very Hitchcock’esqe feel – very appropriate for the season. The long streaks also give the painting a sense of mystery and eeriness. Awesome job Lori capturing the undertones of Halloween…..wooooohooooo 🙂