Large Scale PNW Art | Trees and Clouds in Blue Sky | Change is the Only Constant

Here is my 24″ x 48″ acrylic painting, “Change is the Only Constant.”

Here is a time lapse video of the creation of this painting!

This was the work in progress that I happened to be working on in my studio the week the coronavirus pandemic hit my corner of the U.S. Now with my state under strict “shelter in place” orders, all the kids home from school, many friends experiencing job uncertainty, and the news more horrifying every day, it felt like the COVID-19 pandemic had turned the whole world upside down.

I have always loved this quote:

The only constant in life is change.

–Heraclitus

This is a painting filled with a sense of movement, fluffy white clouds billowing across the brilliant blue of the open sky above us.

It looks like the clouds are shifting before our eyes into new shapes, almost-recognizable as objects: an animal? a face? a country on a map?…before morphing and spreading out into another configuration of water vapor and light.

The beautiful trees stand sentry around the edges of this open clearing. As their branches reach high up into the sky and are kissed by sunlight, it’s easy to imagine the cold wind flowing in the atmosphere up there, pulling wisps of clouds along in its currents.

This nature scene is fresh, open, and happy.

Just like in this painting, the winds are shifting up high in the sky, the sun is shining, the trees are swaying all over our beautiful Earth.

Even in the most dire crisis, the world keeps turning and life goes on. Nature is still beautiful.

We can take comfort in the fact that no matter the current struggle, it will be temporary. Everything in life is ephemeral. There are no exceptions. All we have is this moment.

Sometimes our own mortality and circumstances outside our control feel overwhelming. But it’s nonetheless wonderful to be alive. Looking up at a big blue sky full of shifting clouds can help us appreciate it all.