Charles E. Burchfield (1893-1967), Cherry Tree in May, 1916; watercolor and pencil on paper, 14 x 10 inches; Image from the Burchfield Penney Archives
Yellow bird singing; falling cherry bloom – yellow dandelion
At noon the haze is thick All gone – sky cloudy wispy distance vaguely blue -
Sparrows on lawn are RV -
O, RV, + Ind red dirt on green grass – Tulips vivid colors faces against green – or O + lt red
A rainy dusk; neut blue haze – pale yellow afterglow beneath storm clouds – thunder and rain at night –
A windy dusk blew a rainstorm thru the leaf-spotted May trees – half of trees still bare – at the climax of the storm the cloud part to reveal the moon behind some cherry trees on a hill + a shower of petals come down
The other evening at dusk – metallic grey blue light from the sky was reflected in the shiny surface of young poplar leaves – producing a great greenish violet color.
Charles E. Burchfield, May 6, 1916