Three stages of a 24"x18" oil painting (cotton on masonite), just completed. This is from a badly judged exposure setting photograph I took in Marlay Park-a very popular 300 acre public park in Rathfarnham, Dublin.

The demise of this great tree fascinated me at the time and, while I have made previous efforts to create a painting from it, this is my most "complete" effort. I had great difficulty with the tonal values because of the over exposure. This difficulty reinforces my belief in plein air painting, when, even if the painting is not a success, there is still authentic color notation from which a studio painting can be created.