Quality of Light

In my last post, I mentioned the water-laden air here. Light in Cascadia is heavily affected by this. There is often an iridescent or opalescent quality to the light, particularly on sunny days from fall equinox to spring, when the sun is lower on the horizon. Sunlight shines through the moist air, adding a soft quality and depth to the landscape. The moisture that coats the trees, basalt rock, ferns, everything, deepens their colors as well. The result is visually transfixing. The environment seems to glow. Colors are oversaturated. Capturing this phenomenon has long been the obsession of Northwest artists. (The book, “Iridescent Light,” which tracks the evolution of modern Northwest art through its artists, describes this well.)


(Left: Lupin on Mt. Baker)

Bodies of water in the landscape, large and small, affect the light and the environment’s color palette as well. When the sun appears, the glare off the Sound, the ocean, the lakes, and even the puddles can be blinding. Yet, late in the day when the low sun cuts across the landscape under a bank of heavy clouds, the effect is stunning… like a movie set.

Then, on days like this the steely sky is reflected by the water, and both turn grey. Everything is shrouded in muted tones. Color withdrawal sets in….