In The Studio: Number 68 of 90 Paintings in 90 Days, “Looking South”

Looking south into the sun, with rough water and rough surf.  This painting has everything a painter needs, even if the composition is a little less than spectacular, a little bit of overlapping shapes would have helped in this regard.dampen the paper with a natural sponge and then wipe the excess water off of the surface with the same sponge, this will help to control the washes.  Start with a strong piece of cerulean blue in the upper right and the brush down to it a cool grey mixture of ultramarine blue, cobalt blue, cadmium scarlet and a touch of ultramarine violet, lightly brush in a fairly pure piece of raw sienna at the lower edge of the sky. Before the sky dries and using the side of a large round brush work a darker mix of the cooler grey color over the sky creating a nice piece of framing in the sky.  Brushing some of this mixture into the water and put in some pieces of cerulean blue and olive green for variety.  Now I want to have the water applied on the damp paper to hopefully get a bleed back into the sky at the horizon line.  This gives the feeling of a distant land mass.Paint the foreground with a strong mixture of burnt sienna, ultramarine blue, alizirin, and cadmium scarlet, keep the brush pretty dry and paint with the side of the brush.  Create a wonderful dark textural passage, and then make a few scrapes with a sharp pocket knife.Paint in the land mass on the right with a variety of the colors that have already been used.  Again use the side of the brush for variety and form.  Paint the trees and the water using your best brush marks, think about each piece be thoughtful and the painting will be lively and expressive.  A mistake most beginners make is to use the same repetitive brush marks and by doing so they loose the opportunity to make a simple subject exciting.