Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Grand Harbor Light seascape--progression

My painting progression posts seem to be a hit with folks so I am going to post more of them this year. I've created a "progression" label--see the sidebar on the right--so you can look up past paintings I have posted about.

I recently finished a commission for a seascape of Grand Harbor lighthouse in Michigan. The painting presented a compositional challenge in that the the canvas was very long and narrow (20 x 60 inches) and I had to figure out how to incorporate the buildings in a visually compelling manner.

step 1: base coat of cadmium orange and basic composition sketched in with charcoal



step 2: underpainting (a mixture of ultramarine blue and cadmium orange) of basic shapes and darkest values

step 3: laying in the sky--I added a lot of drama and diagonal lines to add visual interest

step 4: adding more color to sky


step 5: I opted for a choppy surf for more visual interest

step 6: I must have gotten lost in right brain mode because I forgot to photograph a few steps ;-)  The sky is mostly completed with a slightly setting sun and lots of dramatic clouds, choppy surf and architectural features laid down.

final piece ready to send off to clients!






Wednesday, January 16, 2013

Happy Camper in the news

Happy Camper Mobile Art Gallery: Happy Camper in the news: The Happy Camper Mobile Art Gallery is making the news!  She (as I like to call my little trailer) was featured in the NH Arts & Enter...