I had painted several times in Philadelphia's Bartram's Garden during the summer months. Painting in winter offered a whole new landscape. Bartram's Garden is in the city along the Delaware River but has the feel of being totally cut off and a million miles away from the urban environment.

In summer, the thick foliage blocks the view of the skyscrapers and the tank farms of the oil refineries just across the river. In winter, with no leaves to block the view the landscape changes entirely. One is now a time traveler in John Bartram's 1780s garden looking out at the modern day.

On this day, the garden was wonderfully still with only the sounds of squirrels running through the fallen leaves.