A Sense of Depth

A solid grasp of foreground, mid and background makes Colley Whisson's scenes come to life

I think of myself as a direct impressionist, able to paint any subject in any lighting. I must admit there are a few subjects I still find a bit of a struggle.

The surface texture of my finished painting is extremely important to me, and I believe my brushwork to be a subtle secret code. When thinking of paint application, one of my favorite things I've learned is to think of the sky as if it were a piece of fine silk, the mid distance as the texture of cotton and the foreground a thick piece of carpet.