8x10 plein air acrylic on canvas

When I woke one morning I had it in mind to paint a scene on Quadra Island, of which I already had a vision of what I wanted to see. I had visions of distant misty mountains, islands and driftwood. When I arrived at Rebecca Spit and hiked around for a good location to set up I was looking for all the ingredients to a recipe I was following in my head. I landed about half way up the spit. I found that the weather conditions were exactly as I had envisioned, with calm smooth seas and piles of driftwood in the foreground. I got to work. While I was part way through this painting the Nordic Queen smoothly slid through the scene, I quickly snapped a photo so I could accurately paint her in later. I finished the scene in my studio and added some gulls along with the Nordic Queen then. The Nordic Queen adds a very important touch to this painting, her wake breaks up the reflection on the water which otherwise would have been competing too much with the focal point. She also adds a valuable touch of contrasting colour to a generally cool blue scene.

As a typically introverted guy I’ve been surprised how much I enjoy chatting with people who gather to watch me paint en plein air and it just adds another layer of enjoyment for me of plein air painting.