A few weeks ago I was driving back from Indiana and I kept passing all these great barns out in the fields. The golden hay contrasting with the purples and siennas of the soil really struck me.

When I passed this light blue barn, I knew I had to make a painting.

I had too many miles ahead of me to stop and take photos, so I made notes and decided to paint from memory.

The first thing I did was set up my composition. I wanted the clouds to cross in the sky to the left and the shadows and highlights in the grasses to zag to the left as well setting up a sidewise V and then have an element on the far right to cross the V.

Next, I start making decisions on the color and perspective.

Decided to change the view of the barn. I wanted it turned a little instead of straight on. And the  worked on controlling the color.

Okay, this is what I came up with. I brought the changing sky back and worked on the trees on the left and tried to pull together all of my elements to create an overall harmony.