Here is my starting point today. The photo on the left is where I stopped painting several years ago. The one on the right is where I stopped yesterday –– after painting two of the boats with a blue/violet hue. You can see how their shapes are better defined now, even without the extra light.
My palette today looks like this:
A combination of Prussian Blue, Lamp Black, Violet and Soft Mixing White. The colors I am mixing will vary between tones of each of these colors. I am using to black to muddy up the other colors as needed.
I'm starting with the top of the third boat. Even though the original boat had green trim, I'm turning the trim blue. I plan on getting rid of anything that won't look like moonlight.
I'm continuing on down with the blue/violet color for the flat areas and deep blue for the window trim.
I take it on down and have to make a decision. When I first started this painting I painted in the names on the boats, at least the two that had them. You can see from above that I had not reached the point to put in the reflection of the names.
Now, I'm having second thoughts about those details. So, I will regress. About eight years ago when I started painting again after not painting for about 25 years, I did a series of five paintings while living on a bluff above Canyon Lake, Texas.
They were my "coming out" paintings as we made plans to move to the Texas Coast and start an art gallery to sell my work. My very first painting, called, "Five Boats," has been referred to as maybe my best. Go figure...
This was also the first painting we sold –– to our dear friend, Linda V. in Rockport. It was great to be able to visit her all the time and see this piece that started it all.
This painting was a combination of three photos I took while at the coast. They were not all the same color. I turned them all white and gave them the classic reddish bottom paint. I wanted to show all the differences in design of these little bay shrimpboats. I also wanted a "power" composition and used a one-point perspective to do that. All the boats go back to one point on the horizon and they take your eyes with them.
When you get there, you are greeted by the dock between the boats and one lone little Gull, sitting on the post. I used to laugh with my friend, Jed, about how my paintings were not about the boats.........they were about the BIRD!.. if you took the time to really look at it.
Many of my paintings have one bird hidden somewhere in them. I was going to stick to that, but it became cumbersome in some compositions. But, sometimes I will still put one in for fun.
So, I think about this first painting when I am working on this new one. I'm thinking about simplifying shapes and colors like I did on the old one. There is something very powerful about these three boats together coming out at you. I'll see where this simplification goes.
I can still change my mind if I don't like it!
I keep painting until the whole boat has lost it's light. I have to model the form with lights and darks to give it dimension. I'm allowing the blues to get lighter as they go towards the back of the boat. I have also gotten rid of the boat names and some other details on the bows.
This boat turned out a little bluer than the other boats. I'm not sure yet when that will be corrected, since once these blues are dry, I will start adding some light from behind. For now, my goal is to get rid of the existing light.
Here is something that I should mention. While doing these new colors on the water reflections I also want to check to see that the reflections are accurate. Some could use some tightening up. So, while I am changing the colors I am also changing some positions.
The secret to accurate reflections is to do a little measuring.
I just use my handy brush to do the measuring. I place the brush next to the canvas and use my finger to mark the spot on the brush. The rule is that if an object comes down to the water, then its reflection is the exact same distance from the water's edge. So, I mark that distance and move my brush down.
There. The distance is pretty accurate on this spot. I do this on several places to double check. Some places need a little correction, which is easy to do at this stage.
Now that I have painted out the lighted reflections on this last boat, I move to the reflections on the other boats.
As I paint, I am also changing colors on the reflections to coordinate with the new colors of the boats. I am also adding in some swirls in the wet paint to simulate movement of the water. I will come back over all that with more shapes later if needed.
While I'm at it, I again do more checking on distances.
Measuring the boat...
...and then its reflection.
This is the last little golden light detail that I am removing. This boat needed more correction than the others. You have to realize that you are not able to measure the objects above the boat hulls like you can the hull itself. These objects, like the cabin and windows, are set back from the plane the hulls are on, so they show less in the reflections. You have to use your judgement as to how much these objects have to be shortened to look right.
Now the boats and the reflections are all painted in. Next I am going to add some black water shapes to the foreground before moving on to the new lighting behind the boats.
Meanwhile, here is a photo of myself and our rescue dog, Diego, at our front gate. It was taken yesterday by our photographer friend, Teri, who was visiting from down the beach.
Stay tuned for more from "Casa de Artista!"
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