La Croix. 2025. Winter. 5.5x8 cm.

La Croix. Winter. 5.5 × 8 cm. 2025

This original plein-air oil painting was created in La Croix, in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland, during the winter of 2025. Small in scale yet attentive to atmosphere, the work captures a quiet seasonal moment shaped by cold air, muted light and the stillness that settles over the landscape during winter.

La Croix is situated above Lutry within the Lavaux region, an area where vineyards, villages and wooded hills gradually rise from the shores of Lac Léman (Lake Geneva). The landscape changes dramatically during the colder months, when colours become restrained and the surrounding environment is transformed by fog, frost and winter light. (Mapcarta)

Rather than focusing on a specific landmark, this painting is dedicated to atmosphere itself. Winter reduces the landscape to essential relationships between tone, space and light. Details recede while subtle variations in air, distance and texture become more visible. The small format of the work reinforces this sense of intimacy, inviting close observation of a fleeting moment that might otherwise pass unnoticed.

On this winter day, the landscape appeared suspended between silence and movement. Light filtered softly across the surroundings, while the season introduced a sense of stillness that altered the perception of space. The atmosphere seemed simplified yet deeper, revealing the quiet complexity of the winter landscape.

The region of Vaud is known for the contrast between its vineyard slopes, lake views and elevated countryside. During winter these elements become connected through changing weather conditions, creating landscapes where visibility, colour and mood shift continuously throughout the day. (Mapcarta)

Created during a single plein-air painting session, this work preserves a direct encounter with winter light and atmosphere in Western Switzerland. The painting records a brief moment of observation, where landscape becomes less a description of place and more an experience of season.

This work belongs to my ongoing series dedicated to the landscapes of Vaud, Lavaux and the surroundings of Lac Léman. Each painting records a real encounter with a place, a season and a changing state of light observed outdoors in nature.

Original plein-air oil painting by Olga Tacan.

Location: La Croix, Vaud, Switzerland
Subject: Winter landscape and atmosphere
Region: Lavaux and the surroundings of Lac Léman (Lake Geneva)
Medium: Oil painting
Date painted: Winter 2025

Oil on paper

Plain air painting

Size 5.5 cm x 8 cm

Size with passé-partout  13.5x26.5 cm 

Date: Winter 2025

Location: La Croix, Switzerland