"A Bend in the River" by Brenda Hofreiter

**** This painting won 3d place in the juried competition entitled "Plein air in Florida" (2009 )
at the Museum of Florida Art & Culture.

This painting was created along the banks of the Econ River in Orange County, FL. There is a trailhead near UCF that I hiked out of. It was quite a trek down to the river, but the effort was rewarded by seeing this beautiful scene. There were many changes to the river during the course of this painting since it took several trips to get it completed. On one visit, I had to sit in the water and on another the water level had fallen to reveal previously unseen submerged logs. I was amazed by how quickly the water rises and falls during rain events. In some places the high water mark on the trees is
5 - 7 feet high and I wouldn’t want to be caught along the river in THAT! In my painting you can see the high water mark on the foreground palms is about 4 feet higher than the current water level.

I of course, was intrigued by the bend in the river. I'm a sucker for wondering what is around the bend! (When I kayak, it's what keeps me going just a bit longer.) Not to mention what a nice composition an S curve makes in a painting. I love the reflections in the water of the overhanging oaks and palms. The painting brings back the feeling of peace in this place.