The Express, 15 x 18

Racing the sunset.....

....I sped past artist Rob Weiss's home (sorry Rob, no time to stop) hoping to have enough time to paint the Kingston Express in the setting sun.  I knew it would be just a quick study but had to give it a try.  The variety of reds in the boat and reflecting on the water were so enticing.

This is the same limited palette from the last few posts....plus ultramarine blue.

Here is an early view.  You can notice that what was, in color terms, blown out by the sun slowly turned hue becoming more orange and yellow over the course of 90 minutes.

I think there is enough here to return with a larger canvas, change the composition a bit and see where it will go.   

Beach Apple, 8x10

 

iFLOPS.  With this blog post I am suggesting we 'locals' start a new organization.  There's PAWA, the organization of Washington Plein Air Painters.  There's OPA, the Oil Painters of America....but no iFLOPS.......the Flat Light painters of Puget Sound.  I think I got an idea here.

These thoughts occurred to me late yesterday afternoon as I was standing in the rain painting this lovely little wild apple tree on the shore of Pleasant Beach.  Flat light has its challenges.  Flat light with drops rolling down into my eyes presents another.  BUT, after several years of driving past this little wonder I finally painted it.  It would have been so much better with a little sun.

I wonder how it got there.  Did an apple drift to shore....or did someone toss a core out the window as they drove by?  Did you know that you can't plant an apple seed and actually get the type of apple you planted?  They all revert to their wild state.....which was somewhere in Kazakstan.  All those Red Delicious, Braeburns, Cameos, and all the others came from grafted trees.

My goal is to educate.

By the way, the 'i' stands for 'idjut'.

(Update a few days later.  I've been informed that this is a plum....the apple is just down the beach....does this mean someone threw out their pit?     ....nah, flowering plum)