New Painting Reboot

I started painting this image yesterday, and this morning I realized that it wasn't going to work on the canvas I was using. You can read about it here. The underlying painting was showing through, and you could see the textures of the paint strokes and of the ground. Because of the whites of the boat, I really wanted to start anew and let the surface of the boat be completely unblemished. I don't usually leave brush strokes, so I think this will help make the boat look as sleek and smooth as it should. It will also help when I paint the transitions between the lights and shadows.

I like this simple composition, and think I've gotten the drawing mostly down. I roughed in the base colors with a rag. I'm not sure I've ever done that, but it was neat to be drawing with a rag. I can imagine doing a large painting completely with a rag. Maybe that would help me overcome my obsession with details.

I used the rag because instead of toning the entire canvas, I wanted to leave the boat area and the clouds above white, and I didn't want the blues of the sky to be changed by the umber tones, into something greener. I really want to take advantage of the paint qualities, and let the colors and the whites shine through.

I hope you like this new painting, and enjoy seeing its evolution. If you want to see more, follow me!