Uncovering Salvation

Zoey Tiefenthaler "Uncovering Salvation"

16 x 20”, Acrylics, 2022

My inspiration for this came when I was doing different concept sketches for possible projects. I wanted to make a landscape that I had never attempted before, and a cave was the first thing I came up with. For the most part, the look of the sketch to the final painting is quite similar, with some vague differences in regards to additional details and adding extra layers.

The process of this started with my concept sketch, with took about a day to complete. After being happy with the look of it, I chose my canvas for the landscape and proceeded to paint the canvas with my background color. Over time, I began adding in the main elements of the landscape; the rock formations in the background and foreground, the cave walls, the opening of light at the top of the canvas, and the cave lake. For the cave itself, I stayed in the same region of gray, blues, and blacks, accentuating the melancholy feel. In contrast, I brushed in a faded variety of bright yellows to create the rays of light that pour into the center of the canvas. Once the main elements were put into place, I painted my final shadows and highlights. I finished it all off by flicking Titanium White on the canvas, additionally dotting the canvas with a white gel pen.

This piece of work describes the hidden beauties of nature that are present but unseen. The cave lays dormant and undiscovered, practically begging to be explored with the hole in the roof of the cave. The light gently touches the surface of the lake, grazing it with softness as if comforting it. The almost-menacing look of the cave contrasts with the light from above. One may wonder where this hole has come from if it is something natural or broken open by unnatural means. And if someone or something were to fall through the hole and land in the cave, what exactly would they find in its confines? Since only this view is given to the viewer, you can only guess what lies ahead.

The most difficult part of this process was painting in the light rays coming into the cave. At first, I was unhappy with how the rays weren’t looking transparent and the colors weren’t looking favorable, for me. As time progressed, however, and with a lot of repetition and color changes, I was able to make the rays look more and more transparent and somewhat realistic. If I were to have started this painting over, I would have tried to improve the shadows on the rock formations and the cave walls as they cover the majority of the canvas.

The style of this painting is majorly realistic, though on a lower scale. Though I don’t draw or paint landscapes too often, I believe my use of colors and the way I executed the look on the rock formations pertains well to my own style. Overall, I quite like how this painting turned out. For the first official painting that I’ve ever done seriously, I am rather proud of myself. Obviously, there are more than a few little mistakes that I could’ve touched upon to enhance the overall look, but I think I was able to use my colors well and create a legitimate and realistic landscape.