This is an original pastel work by David Coates.
A quiet, wintry marsh at dawn is captured with soft, tactile strokes. Low mounds of snow and frost-covered grasses occupy the foreground, their rounded forms rendered in muted grays and bleached whites that catch the pale light. Clumps of dark reeds and scrubby bushes punctuate the scene, their spiky silhouettes providing contrast against the snow and leading the eye toward the middle ground.
Beyond the foreground, a band of darker water or exposed earth cuts across the composition, a narrow, reflective channel that breaks the expanse of cold and hints at thawing. On the horizon, a stand of trees appears as a low, blackened silhouette—bare and skeletal—against the sky.
The sky is the painting’s warm counterpoint: layered bands of yellow, gold and coral bleed into one another, edged by cooler mauves and blue-grays above. Those horizontal streaks suggest a sunrise caught in the swift moment when night relinquishes to day, bathing the landscape in a tentative warmth. The application of pigment looks soft and slightly grainy, like pastel or charcoal blended with chalk, giving the whole image an intimate, handcrafted feeling.
Overall the mood is one of hushed transition — the cold still present in the foreground, the promise of warmth rising in the sky. Small details, like the texture of the grasses and the smudged, atmospheric treatment of the clouds, invite you to linger and imagine the brittle air and the slow unfolding of morning. A small title and an artist’s signature appear at the lower edges, anchoring the scene as a composed study of a Springvale sunrise.
This work is 8" tall by 6" wide. It is currently framed, but is available unframed as well.
This piece is part of the temporary exhibit "Starry Eyed" come and see it in person through the months of February and March 2026.