It reached 78 degrees here in Pennsylvania today. I pulled up the shades, threw open the windows, and dreamed of faraway places again. My art reflected my mind's wanderings. I pulled a photo of Lake Erie from my archives and was instantly transported to sandy beaches and churning surf.
I could almost feel the sun and the sea spray on my face!
A few notes on today's painting:
As you can see from the shiny areas, I used a masquepen to block out areas I wanted to remain white: seafoam and spray, and beach grasses and shell fragments on the beach. I washed in the sky with a pale wash of Cobalt Blue mixed with a touch of Pthalo Blue (green shade). I painted around the cloud areas and then wet the inside edges of the clouds to allow the sky mix to bleed into them a bit. I used varying mixes of chromium oxide green and Pthalo Blue on the lake.
The fence posts we're added with a mixed of raw umber and payne's gray.
For the sand, I used a variety of techniques to produce the texture: splattering, stippling, varied washes of burnt umber and french ultramarine with burnt sienna. After removing the masking from the grasses, I stroked them in with a 10/0 liner using a variety of mixes of sap green, raw sienna, cadmium red and burnt sienna. I left some of the tips white to suggest sun sparkle. The cast shadows from the grass were applied with weak payne's gray. I used sepia acrylic ink and a fine nib dip pen to add details on the fence and sand. The grasses were detailed with sap green acrylic ink.
For the rocks of the breakwater, I applied a wash of payne's gray. While it was still damp, I placed crinkled plastic wrap over it and left it in place until it was almost dry. This gave me a rock-like pattern. I then added washes of raw umber and payne's grey and burnt umber.
At the base of the breakwater, I had forgotten to mask in areas for sea foam. It can still be created after the fact. I used a sharp razor and gently scraped the areas that I wanted to be white. It makes a fairly convincing seafoam. I did the same where the water meets the beach. On the edges of the grasses on the far left, I wanted to suggest sun sparkle, so I used the razor to gently scrap away a little of the color.
We're still two months away from kayak season, so I'll just have to settle for painting the water! I know many of you are taking the Strathmore Online Workshop with Cathy Johnson too. How's it going for you? I'd love to hear from you.
Until next time,






