The lighting of this piece immediately drew my attention. The division of the picture between the beautifully colored, but not overwhelming, trees in the front, the lit mountain and waterfalls in the mid-ground, and the surrounding mountains and clouds in the background gave this the air of a painting. It is almost surreal from the careful execution of the various components.
The small details throughout the piece help ground it and prevent it from seeming too beautiful to be real. The hues on the mountain, the dappling of light at the bottom of the mountains in the background, and the village nestled against the forest provide depth to the potential stories and themes.
Finally, the piece has nice horizontal and vertical layers. The horizontal division of clouds, mountains, and vegetation work very well with the lighting choices. Using the muted trees in the foreground to frame the off-set mountain draws the eye toward other aspects of the piece and keeps the vertical angles original.
This is truly a beautiful piece that lingers in the memory.