Along the Rail at Rockpile

I saw a painter along the hand rail at Heisler Park.  I like painting with other people.  Even if there isn't a lot of talking it is nice to be around someone with the same interest. 

My board was 24"X36".  The woman I was painting with said there was too much detail in the rocks to make that the subject.  She was painting with oils on a 10"X12" canvas.  She was pretty bitter about her painting through the years.  She told me about all of the galleries she had been in that were no longer in business.  Her attitude seemed to carry over into her painting.  What started as a nice study of the rocks and ocean turned into an overworked bland summary of all the ocean moving at once.  I believe you have to capture the painting from start to finish.  There is no going back.  Either you get it or you don't.  Yesterday I was painting at Montage resort and was working through my painting and lost track of time.  When my wife called and told me I was late, I had to finish before I could go.  In a way, it helped me because I knew I really had to hurry if I was going to finish.  I am usually very decisive in my painting but this little extra push was what I needed. 

I was painting on a deep cool red board which I had not had good results on before.  As it turned out this was a good choice because the day quickly turned cloudy and the rocks took on a saturated look.