Mars Impression
Over the years, I’ve created several paintings of Mars — some accurate, others a little wilder. Much of my inspiration comes from images taken by the HiRISE camera aboard the phenomenal Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter. Recently, I came across a crater so striking that it pulled me in through its sharp, edgy definition. This Mars impression painting originated from a false-colour HiRISE image. This would be an image that highlights data the human eye cannot normally see, deepening our understanding of its formation.The image was taken by MRO from an altitude of 261 kilometres above the Martian surface in January 2015. The location is Meridiani Planum, near the equator. The crater has no name as yet.
Iceland memory
Its overall form immediately reminded me of Kerið (Kerid) a volcanic crater in Iceland. On a trip in December 2003, we stood on the rim looking down into its base. We were surrounded by the incredible colours of the volcanic soil within its caldera. Our guide told us that Björk once performed a concert on the frozen lake at the base, with the audience seated around the rim. Perhaps one day, Mars will offer its own multitude of impact craters for future musical manifestations. Of course, Kerið is a volcanic formation on Earth, while this Martian crater is the result of a powerful impact. After painting several versions of this unnamed crater, I realised something was missing — my happiness button simply wasn’t being pressed.
A different approach
A few weeks later, I returned to the canvas with a different approach. Overpainting it gave me a fresh start. The crater is rich with texture and impressive detail. Using modelling paste, I built an extra-thick surface in various areas. An attempt to create some of the intricate features visible in the false-colour image. Far from a direct copy, the painting set out to express the beauty created by a powerful impactor. I mixed up a pleasing Mars colour to apply once the paste had dried.
More detail
A palette knife helped define the crater rim, while the modelling paste assisted the drilled-line effect on the inner walls. I used a lovely silicone-tipped brush to etch the narrow gullies running from rim to base around the entire crater. The paste also helped roughen the terrain beyond the rim.
Adding bronze and gold paint was enjoyable, sometimes applied with my finger to give the work extra depth. Then the final step involved an improvised icing bag. This I trimmed down to enable me to squeeze out the curved sand-line shapes at the base. Subsequently, I’ve been experimenting with other tools to gain more control over the paste. And yes — there’s a touch of blue in there too. A quiet nod to the image that started it all.
Link to this craters images on HiRise. Use the magnification tool when you open either the map projected on non-map features. The first black-and-white JPEG choice is particularly good. The merged RGB map-projected image is closest to the colours in the image I worked with. The images taken by the HiRise camera are magnificent, capturing so many beautiful sights. A queue of Mars Impressions, enough for a lifetime. Three cheers for the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter working in orbit around Mars for almost twenty years. Here is a link to a previous painting of a Martian feature.
