A ROAD TO REMEMBER - Short Story 4 (Short Stories for Artists, Poets and those who Wander)

 

Not long after we entered the Southern Expressway from Colombo, I wondered what I would learn if I observed it through the eyes of an artist. To be honest, I am not really an artist, but more an art enthusiast if there is such a thing. Colours and lines have always fascinated me, and I once had an illusion of writing an art book called “How to make a paper interesting by using just a pen”. So as you'll gather I'm not an expert. However I have great enthusiasm for art which I think makes up for my lack of skills. 

The first thing that struck me on the expressway was how green everything was. Everything that was below the skyline that was not man-made was actually green. I expected the earth to show in many places and rocks to be seen, but this seemed rarely the case. Trees, shrubs, bushes and grass covered everything. I expected the trunks and branches of trees and twigs to be a different colour, but these seemed to hide behind an army of green. Green itself is a confusing colour for me and many other artists. I usually hide my confusion by painting almost everything in sap green with a touch of viridian. But the truth is every species of tree has a different green. Grass normally has a brighter, lighter yellowish green than the leaves of a tree. No matter how much you try to memorise the colours it kind of doesn’t register. Some trees have a weirdly artificial looking green that painting them exactly would make the painting look artificial. . To make matters worse when the sun shines upon it some greens become luminous and some remain the same. But the strangest things is the most luminous and beautiful green you are likely to see anywhere is found in paddy fields. 

Giving up I looked up at the sky. Skies are another thing most amateur artists get wrong. To begin with what colour is the sky in Sri Lanka on a sunny afternoon. Is it cyan, is it Prussian blue or ultramarine.  The truth is I can’t decide. But I think it is safe to say that in a clear blue sky devoid of any clouds the colour is more positive blue at the top of the picture - the portion which we have to raise our eyes in nature - than it is directly above the horizon which is lighter. As for clouds isolated white clouds will have a clearer definition at the top than underneath. The lightest portion is also at the top, while at the bottom they are darker and more indistinct in outline. 

Sometimes during the evening, parts of the cloud attain a slightly fleshy (crimson) appearance, but as the light fades they suddenly attain a uniform grey colour, when this happens, it looks like the cloud has suddenly died. Other parts of the sky may still be colourful, though the clouds themselves seem dead. But the good thing is that when the sun shines the next day, everything will be colourful again. Every dark cloud really has a silver lining.