picnic beach

It was a clear day among a bunch of rainy days.  It felt like it was going to be a warm day when I started out.  I soon found out I was wrong.  Everyone had winter garb on when I arrived at the beach. 

In working on the initial blocking in of values and colors, I am thinking about working on the areas with the largest amount of the same color and establishing the notan idea.

The wind was so strong that I had to turn my back to my subject.  The wind worked to push my painting onto the easel instead of blowing it off which happened a couple of times.

I continue to work at increasing my pace of painting.  I am trying to get to this stage quicker.  My initial  block in is taking too long because I add a lot of detail that I have to reestablish later in the painting.

As I refine the images I have left some unpainted space around some of the smaller elements within the composition so that they do not get lost in the painting.

The difficulty within this painting is going to be the changing light.  At this point in the painting the sun is peaking around the point and is going to light up all of the rocks.  The question is going to be at what point am I going to freeze its movement across the sky.  Here I am adding the highlights to the rocks.

The basic highlights have been committed to.  The challenge becomes if I will be able to stay true to this impression as I develop the rest of the painting to this moment.

As I move through the painting, I work to get all areas to the same level of development and make them consistent from a color and value standpoint. 

Every adjustment to one part of the painting effects the perception of the rest of the painting.  I have to evaluate the worth and accuracy of each of these adjustments relative to the rest of the painting.  This may mean adjusting the rest of the painting to match one of these adjustments.

There comes a point in every painting where you have committed to the point of no return.  The painting is going to be a very close version of what is sitting before you because there is not enough time to make significant changes.

The realization that you are at that point of no return can be a great moment in the painting.  If I have made solid decisions and executed them fairly well the finishing effort can be exhilarating. 

The freedom of expression opens up and your ability to be in the zone increases.  There is no more contemplation.  The die has been cast and there is only finishing.  

It becomes a race against time.  Can I develop all the parts of the painting to the point that I envisioned when I started?  

When the sprint to finish is done and I have done everything that I can given my level of ability and time, the question becomes: Are there little adjustments that can make a big difference?

The finished painting "Picnic Beach"  24x32 plein air oil on board.

The value shot.  Did I see it right?

The detail shot.  How did I do with the brush work and mark making?  An opportunity to evaluate the abstract nature of painting.