Making waves

I can hardly believe that this time last week I was looking out on a damp , grey garden. It rained , a lot, all day.Today it is a glorious sunny day, in fact some might say a bit too hot. I have just glanced at my barometer in my studio and it's reading 34 degrees , phew. So here in the U.K. at least we all need cooling down.

Many of us are still staying close to home, and needing to be cautious as we gradually get back to doing some of the  things we used to take for granted. I am , like many of you, dipping my toe back into the world, quite wary of what I might find. However we need to take a few tentative steps, and judge the best way we all move forward.I think we need to hold onto each other ( metaphorically ) , be kind, let people emerge in their own time. What might be right for one person will not be right for another, and hope against hope that some things may change for the better.

So with that in mind, I like many of you am dreaming of seeing the sea again. Not the crowded scenes we see on the news, but maybe I can find a quiet , secluded cove, where I can watch the waves crashing on the shore

I may not be there in reality but I feel cooler already, just imagining the scene with my brushes.

First I sketch out a rough wave shape, to see what I mean maybe scroll down a bit, so you can see the end result.

Then I get out my masking fluid, and apply the foam, I flick the masking fluid around, and cover all the white of the wave. Look up waves on Google, see what shapes they make, and then use your imagination.

Now let that dry completely

Now I can move onto the sea behind the wave

I wet the whole area completely with clean water and a large brush, this is just the paper above the wave.

Then using a darker blue along the top, an indigo, I begin to paint, and get lighter as i come down towards the wave

I also use some indigo to give the illusion of waves in the distance

 

Now I take advantage of the hot weather, and pop my painting outside to dry. This is the step just outside my studio

Ah the joys of living in rural Mid Devon

It won't take long to dry, but if you want a rest or a break now is a good time to have one.

Next I wet the area under the wave

Now you can see where i used my masking fluid, I am going for the general colours under the wave. See how right under the foam it is very dark, that colour is indigo. I also use, phaleo blue, lemon yellow, veridian and cobalt blue.

Keep it all loose and wet in wet

Then have another look and go in darker where it needs it, the yellow provides the translucency where the light is showing through the water.

Now you can leave it all to dry again and rub off the masking fluid gently with an eraser.

Now we need to get rid of all those hard edges, and give the foam some shadows.

I like to use my finger as well as brushes to manipulate the paint

 

Can you see I am creating different edges, making it very dark under the foam, and creating shadows in the foam with blues and purples.

I also add some movement to the top of the wave on the right hand side to show the way the water is rolling over.

Some of the top of the wave I have used a damp piece of kitchen roll to smudge the foam to give a watery effect.

Now I leave it outside to dry again before it gets it's final tweaks.

Finally I add some white splats and splatters using white acrylic and darken some of the shadows underneath.

phew I feel cooler already.

Have a go it's great fun and the next best thing to being by the sea. Now where's my ice cream?