St. Stephen's Green - Dublin

St. Stephen's Green, Dublin

This painting is the third 8 x 8 inch canvas done with reference photos from our trip to Ireland in September.   St. Stephen's Green is an urban oasis located in the middle of Dublin.  It reminded me very much of the Boston Common and Public Gardens.   The perfect Sunday weather (yes - again, no rain) drew many people who were enjoying the sprawling greens, ponds and full, floral splendor. 

The people in this scene were sitting in small groups, most with at least one musical instrument in their midst.  The light and shadows were stunning.   The light was so bright that it caused an illusion of yellowish-white in the branches and leaves.   The shadows were so long that they grew wide as they moved away from their source.   The many figures looked like spots of color, only the sun rimming the tops of their heads gave evidence that this was a crowd of people.  The small impressionistic dots of color look chaotic up close but from a distance, I'm thinking - hoping - they look like figures sitting and walking in the park.