It started with a Sketch. "Sea Gazing", the work in Progress

It started with a fleeting glimpse of winter light over the sea with a heavy sky, a snapshot put to memory whilst walking the cliff path between Summerleaze and Crooklets Beach on a winters afternoon in January.

Quick watercolour sketch from memory , the starting point

I wanted it on a large scale and put some initial colour down on a piece of unstretched canvas. The canvas was thenstretched and measured 130 x 110 cm, so I found myself straddling it when it wasn’t on the easel. I like to move the paint around and let it do it’s own thing; create surprises and happy accidents

As I started painting, the perspective just wasn’t right and it was sending mixed messages. Don thought it was the middle of the breakwater and I could see that would work, so several photographs later, I changed the angle completely and decided to record the progress.

1. Added some rocks to left and drippy foreground
2. Depth to the sea, highlights to sky and sea and different rocks. The perspective was wrong.
3. I added the breakwater base and worked on the cliffs and mid ground rocks, highlighting.
4. The bigger pebbles of the back of the breakwater added and more work on the sea and highlights to horizon
5. Definition to the water and foreground and softening the light on the sea and Finished!

Completed only four days before the show opening, it is now hanging at the Willoughby Gallery, The castle as part of my solo exhibition titled “The View From The Shore” on until the 16th May.

“Sea Gazing” 130 x 110cm on canvas