"Boats With Ropes" 18x12

"Boats With Ropes" 16x12"

I just finished this piece today! Well at least till I take a long look at it and find something more to fix! I'd like to enter this one in the NPS Open International along with "Buoy Dance" with hopes they both get in. This painting may look familiar from prior posts, that's because it is a larger format of the "Boats and Ropes" that I posted earlier...below. As with most of my posts, I have included the steps that I took to get to this point. Here they are....



First, I start out with a "blaring" orange underpainting of Orange Createx paint (pure water-based pigment). I used orange because it is the compliment to blue and this painting will be a predominately blue and purple piece. I lightly sketched my image with a blue pastel pencil.



Then I "block-in" my basic colors. Most of the orange will be covered when I'm done, but specks of it peek through the pastel, giving it a unified look. I try not to paint any details yet at this point...hard to do.. indeedy-do.



Here, I'm beginning to work on the water. At this stage, I have used some yellows and blues and am beginning to define the cloud formations in the water. This seems to be a tricky thing to paint. I am often undecided on how I want the water to look like. Do I want it wavy, dark, with or without clouds? Lots of questions....it eventually evolves later. I have also begun some detailing in the boat on the right, and the feeling of light in the distant hillside. I begin to add detail in the dock woodwork but, because it in the foreground, I should keep this detail at a minimum. I'm checking and re-checking my values throughout the process.



Now, my painting sessions get longer, quieter, as I begin to breathe life into the piece. Attention to detail and constant evaluation of the water is what I am focusing on at this point. Asking myself about the values of the colors, is it pulling together? Quietly thinking, "What do I want to communicate?" This is my favorite part of the piece because I can see it coming along....almost done....



Ropes, ropes and more ropes! Here, to make the rope reflections (and the big yellow rope), I have taken the side of my pastel and just lightly dragged it down the surface of the painting, sometimes intentionally wiggling it, sometimes not even making a mark to give the water a wet look. This is my favorite part to do. It's like putting the "highlight" in the portriat of a childs' eyes! I might want to check the reflections for accuracy, but for now, I'm done!
Giclee' print available through Imagekind