We’re going to play word association today.

I say “paintings” you say “gallery” or “canvases” or, some of you, “finger”.

I say “landscapes” you say “snooze” or “ho-hum” or “yawn”. It’s okay, you’re not alone — why else would hotels put ocean or farm landscapes on the walls, if not to help escort you into sleepy-land?

I don’t claim to understand why something that is awe-inspiringly beautiful in person — a glowing sunset over the Pacific, for example — is trite when captured literally in a painting. It just is. So imagine the thrill and surprise when, in the midst of a wine-tasting weekend in Paso Robles, I walked into a gallery showing the work of Erin Hanson and saw this:

And this:

And this:

Painter Erin Hanson doesn’t replicate the colors we see, but the emotion we feel seeing them. So Paso Robles’ green and brown hills and vineyards become purple and orange and red (but really, with all the better Crayola names and nuances of purple and orange and red). Her landscapes stayed with me.

So today, I’m sharing her with you.  www.erinhanson.com

Photos on a computer screen don’t begin to capture the effect they have in person, which is is making you want to take all of them home, but it’s too good not to try. Happy Thieving Thursday, one and all.