Into The Wild

Adventuring into the mountains allows DJ the chance to experience the landscape firsthand

Spending time with nature has always been a huge source of inspiration, and the mountain environment holds a special fascination for me. I love scrambling up high to seek out rocky crags and elevated views of the valleys below. Painting outdoors is simply the best way to really immerse yourself in a landscape and connect with your subject. “Being there,” I find, is the most effective way to experience the natural colour, light and tonal values of a given landscape, as well as being able to witness the day as it evolves, capturing the true essence of the moment. I also find it much easier for me to get “in the zone” and totally focus on my painting. Mountainous areas have their own weather systems that can provide you with all four seasons in one day, and as the artist, you can select elements of these moments to add to your painting. The painting then becomes a story of the whole day, rather than a quick snapshot.

My favourite season for painting mountains is winter. When the hills are cloaked in a blanket of snow, it completely transforms the landscape. Many of the crags and broken ridges have been sculpted with blizzard blown cornices or shrouded in veils of ice. This helps to define the individual shape, form and character of each mountain. Frost and snow reflect the colour of the skies, and the shadows change from strong, bold, dark tones to subtle shades of blues and purples. If you are lucky enough to catch a winter sunset or sunrise, you will witness the hills painted in shades of pinks, yellows, reds, lilacs and blues that can be so intense as to look otherworldly for a short while.