Originally, there was this huge fire burning in the distance, possibly about to engulf the entire forest foreground. I had prepared first a dark canvas with a layer of burnt sienna, imitating old paintings stuck under the darkened, resin-based damar varnish. It is undoubtedly my darkest painting because even the lightest colors applied couldn’t get white enough and I loved it.

However, when my family caught a glance of what I was creating, there was strong opposition to the unjustified glorification of destruction in the form of a tragic forest fire. That calamity, distracted from the beauty of nature.

We always want a happy ending. So, I scrubbed the still wet flames and painted over it.