"Painted in 1923. This painting of an evening stream in sunset glow I made soon after Redgate burned and sold to Mr. and Mrs. Walter D. Deneque of Washington, D. C. and Manchester, Mass. ( Mr. Deneque is now dead.)"
Early in Woodward's career, he frequently painted the woods surrounding his first studio, Redgate.
He often did so from the stoop of his doorway using the light of the setting sun, therising moon or a lantern he hung above his easel to see. They are hauntingly atmospheric and
highly impressionistic in their composition. These paintings were reminiscent of one of the most popular artist of the 19th century, Ralph Albert Blakelock and brought RSW a great
deal of his early recognition and success. However, by 1925 and the rise of the American Art Scene movement their popularity waned and RSW began to focus more on what was
his core inclinations to paint what he saw in its most common and natural state.
The painting to the right, Silent Evening, is one example of what the
scene of Evening Glow may look like. You can also see Tangled Branches, for another.