Blog

This painting is based on a plein air study made on location. I couldn't stand in the spot I wanted, as that is a slope down to the canal... one step wrong, and I'd get watercolour instead of pastel... So I had to choose a grassy patch to the side, and take a reference photo from the right angle.

 

In the plein air study, I got down the colours  (minus the pinks, as that one wasn't on my plein air palette), and the experience, hear the water, the gulls, feel the wind -- and chat with bypassers. The sketch took about an hour to paint. The experience of having been there works well in the studio, even though I painted the studio version one year later, and slightly more muted than the very vivid study.