The tide rushes out to sea in minutes on the coast of Maine. My thought with this painting was to capture the rivulets of water receding from the shore and the emotions one feels at the end of the day as the sun is sinking, the air is cooling dramatically and it's time to pack the gear, heading home for dinner.
This painting started out with just a rough line drawing to locate the major players, trees, cloud, horizon line and so on. I know the feeling that I want this painting to convey and if I can pull that off, I'll feel pretty good about it. I am working from a couple of photos I took while painting in Maine, near Acadia National Park.
Laying in general colors into big areas, I know in the end the trees need to have some lovely deep reds coming though as if backlit, so a wash of transparent yellow earth and transparent red oxide did a nice job.
In this photo it's much easier to see the photos I am using for my resource material. Not great photos but enough information to remind me what the scene looked like standing there on the shore, watching the tide water quickly recede. If your painting in Maine it's a good idea to have a tide ap on your phone, so you can plan where to stand. In a couple of hours you can be underwater if your not careful. Another good ap is the sunrise / sunset ap, again great for planning your painting day.
Oil on Canvas, 20" x 24"
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