Invisible Sun

Invisible Sun by Martin Howard (2014)
Watercolour, 36 x 27 cm, 140 lb Heavy grain paper.
Domnarvet, Borlänge, Sweden.

Sometimes you could be forgiven for thinking that there are only two colours in Sweden during the winter, black and white. The days when the sun doesn't show itself are just boring and devoid of colour. This painting was one of those winter days. I took a walk down to the local river to see if I might find something to paint. There was snow and ice on the ground, but the trees were bare. I couldn't find any ducks or swans either. The only little bit of colour to be found was from a small gap in the clouds, allowing some sunlight through, although the sun was quite invisible. The small island in the river provided some shelter from the wind, giving a glass-like surface. The reflections of the island and the far bank were at least beautiful on an otherwise dull winter's day.