Mount Kazbegi at sunset

We are back in Abu Dhabi and are reflecting on our Georgian holiday. One of the things that stand out for me is Mount Kazbegi. As the highest peak in the Caucasians, it stands as a guardian over the town Stapandsminda. Having grown up in the mountains of the Western Cape in South Africa, I am fascinated by high mountains and that is probably why this peak has such a hold on me.

On our last evening at Stepandsminda we visited the Rooms Hotel, Kazbegi for a final round of their awesome brownies and apple pie. The clouds were rolling in and it was cold enough to sit under blankets out on the hotel’s deck. While sitting there I took an amazing photograph of the setting sun playing with the clouds around Mount Kazbegi. I used that photograph as the basis for this digital painting.

Please note that all paintings are performed freehand. I do not trace any pictures.

A view from the monastery

One of the many monasteries overlooking the Kazbegi mountains is located on the slope of the mountain overlooking Stepandsminda and also has a spectacular view on Mount Kazbegi. I took a panoramic photo from the pastures above the monastery and used that as the reference for a painting.

For this painting I started with cool greys (blue greys) and then added neutral greys and greens to it. This is the first didtal painting of the Kazbegi region that I am really satisfied with. I am starting to develop huge respect for those painters who manage to capture nature in plein air.

Gergeti

We are currently in Stepantsminda in Georgia. It as an area of magnofocent mountains with Mount Kazbegi with a peak altitude of 5047m towering over the town. I quickly reliazed that watercolour is not going to give me the definition I want to capture the mountains, but still did a quick watercolour study during a hike we did yesterday. The building is one of three buildings at the Gergeti Trinity Church. I am not a church fanatic (I am serious about my faith, but not about churches), but I really appreciate the effort that the Georgians put into these hundreds of years’ old buildings. It is built from raw limestone and the material had to be elevated by more than a 1000m from the town of Stepandsminda to the site of this church.