“Summer Sentinel”

I found this tree reaching high over the path at Odiorne Point State Park in Rye, NH on a late spring afternoon.

Like so many things, it inspired me in an instant, and I quickly snapped a picture with my phone.

Later that evening, before dark, I sat in the public square 15 minutes away with my pencils and drawing pad at the ready, laying down the first sketch of the photo, ultimately creating this drawing.

I like how the charcoal blended into the footpath, and the bright paper creates the sense of strong sunlight, yearning to create the heat of summer as spring slowly fades away.