Roaring Through at Benham Falls

I painted this studio piece after completing several studies on location at this spot in Bend, Oregon. What I always find amazing and hypnotic about this particular view is the water's varied movement. The area in the foreground has a sort of chaotic calm to it, with beautiful colors and patterns in continual motion. Then at the drop off, it all suddenly changes to a much more turbulent chaos. From my artistic point of view, the challenge was to harmonize those two drastically different areas, along with the surrounding rock cliffs and vegetation, while still making the distinctions of the water the star of the show.