Outings like this during the severe winter were rare for this artist; I salute all those hearty outdoor painters who are impervious to wind and wind chill. The next two paintings were done last Saturday, a breezy but wonderful day to paint, sheltered as I was by some small firs at the edge of the marsh:
This peaceful marsh adjoins Bissel's Cove, a favorite painting spot of mine. For the second oil sketch I moved my pochade easel a few feet to the east:
It is always a delight for me to paint coastal scenes during low tide. Although this scene was flooded with frontal lighting, the underside of the upturned dock provided some contrast. I don't know why the dock looked the way it did; perhaps it was the victim of one of our windy days!
The oil sketch of the trail above was done today. Again, I found shelter among the trees from the wind. Bissel's Cove is just on the other side of the tree line. The attractions here were the birches and sun-dappled path.
The oil sketch here reflected the scene on the other side of the birch-lined trail. There was a small sailboat seemingly abandoned on the opposite shore.
Obviously most of the oil sketches I do are meant as practice, especially in the seeing and handling of color. Another benefit of painting even hasty sketches like these is that one builds a store of motifs which may be developed into finer expressions in a larger format.
Perhaps by the next posting I will have sketches showing the signs of spring!
