#12: By the Sea

#12 

12"x 16" canvas

#12

Revised

Inspiration for the painting:

One morning, while sipping coffee, I tired of the local news show and began looking for something more uplifting to watch on TV. As I pressed the channel “Up” button, I happened upon another local channel, but this one was airing a painting show. Right up my alley! I watched the show, taking a few pictures of the TV screen, and writing some notes. The show was called, “Paint with Kevin” and was aired by Troy University. In the show, Kevin demonstrated how to paint a sea scape. Although I am guessing he was using oil paints, based on information on his Web site, what he demonstrated could work just as well with acrylic paints. 

 Kevin's painting: (apologies for the lack of clarity)

What I like about the painting:

• I like the way the color darkens on either side of the painting.
• The central part of the smaller wave, and the right side of the wave in the foreground came out well. I can sense movement in them.
• Kevin had only a hint of a second line of waves, I decided to make that more prominent, and I am pleased with the result.
• I find some of the cloudy areas pleasing to look at, but I think the opening is a bit fake. 
• I like the orange sky far better than Kevin’s yellow sky.
• I am glad I persevered. I did not like my painting, and was ready to move on. But, I went back and worked a bit more on the water and waves.

What I might do differently

• Since the sun is brightest near the horizon, I think the ‘silver lining’ of the clouds  toward the top of the picture should be less prominent. I changed this, after Mr. Dreamy pointed out how unreal it looked, and I'm happier with the revision.
• I do not care for the rock on the left side, which (to me) looks like something the dog left behind. 

What I learned:

• Kevin reminded his viewers to take a 6 foot view of their paintings often. It really looks quite different when you remove yourself in that way.
• I am becoming more confident about using the brushes. My favorite brush, for the moment, is a 3/8" Lunar Blender by Princeton. It has a filbert shape with short, stiff bristles. I use it a lot in softening lines, like in the clouds.
• Kevin showed how to use the palette knife for painting. I used it for the small background waves, but forgot to try using it in the foreground for the small wavelets in the sand and the rocks.
• I missed the beginning of the video lesson, but found that after Kevin completed the sky, he pulled a piece of tape off the canvas that he used to created a flat horizon line. It was a great way to create that line.

Colors I used:

• Burnt Sienna
• Cadmium Yellow (Light)
• Cobalt Blue
• Cerulean Blue Hue
• Cadmium Red (Medium)
• Mars Black
• Titanium White