Moody clouds, showers darkening the sky, and determined waves marching onto the shore, that’s what May’s painting project has inspired. Thank you to everyone who’s shared their paintings and shown me a favourite part of my world through different eyes. Enjoy!
From Marion: Thanks for sharing your painting, and I hope it’ll be the first of many. For me it’s very much got the moodiness of the location on the day the reference photo was taken, and the layers of paint enhance the sense of the heaviness of the weather. Focusing on the enjoyment of the process and the materials I’m using is how I like to paint, heading towards an idea but not being entirely sure of the route by which I will (might) get there.
From Marion: I think it’s working beautifully now, the sense of a passing shower, the movement on the water, and the houses giving a sense of scale.
From Marion:I don’t think the sky is too dark, it’s stormy weather after all. What I think it wants is to come down further, to feel connected to the landscape rather than floating above it. I’d join the two semi-circles on the leftmost section of the sky, and bring a rainshower down out of the rightmost bit, angling it to the right (not vertical). Although this risks taking the viewer’s eye off the composition, it’ll git with the direction of movement in the forground vegetation and the waves coming onto the shore.
From Marion: Your pulling out of the essence of the scene — the colours and movement — has created a painting that I find absorbing, that encourages my brain to fill in details and anticipate the movement of the water onto the shore. The curves i.e. top right in the land, echoed by the sea and strong line of black, give a sense of the shape of the landscape, saying a lot with little. A seemingly simple painting that’s hard to do!
From Marion: If I look at it with the reference photo in mind, then I’d agree that it doesn’t feel stormy enough. But if I look at it as a painting on its own, and ultimately that’s how paintings are considered, then it feels like a mild autumn day at Camus Mor and not weak at all.
I had two goes at this painting project. The first was mixed media, starting with acrylics and ending with oil pastel (see this step-by-step blog).
My second painting I did because looking at the photos I took during the painting of my first I realised how much I enjoyed it at the Payne’s grey and yellow stage. It’s a long way from the stormy scene in the project’s reference photo, but would never have happened if I hadn’t done the first painting.
I love ALL of these! Amazing how we can each interpret the scene in different yet beautiful versions. Marion… the yellow and gray version is so interesting… love the yellow dot of sun I’ve never been to Scotland, but I live close to Lake Huron and love the stormy days as much as the sunny ones.
Thank ALL of You for the inspiration!