An oak grove near Cozia, painted over three October mornings when the trees were at the turning point between full colour and the beginning of fall — the specific week when green and gold occupy the same branch. The painting tries to record that simultaneity rather than choosing one state over the other.
The composition is structured around the vertical rhythm of the trunks, which provide a measured cadence against which the irregular horizontal movement of light through the canopy can be felt. The sky is barely present — just enough to establish the quality of the light.
About the artist
Carmen Badea makes landscapes that are first of all honest and only secondarily beautiful — she is more interested in recording the light as it actually is on a grey Tuesday in November than in selecting subjects that lend themselves to easy pictorial success. The paintings that result have a muted, contemplative quality she considers more truthful than the bright pastoral tradition.
Alongside the oils, she maintains a gouache botanical illustration practice that is more precise and patient than anything else she makes. The two practices feed each other: the broad handling of landscapes loosens the botanical work, while the precision of botanical studies disciplines the landscape painting. She accepts commissions for both.
