Salt, Surf & Fog

After a really long cold spring summer arrived in one day.  It got hot . Everything bloomed at once. The sky was clear and cloudless. At my house 8 miles in from the coast, the thermometer went up to 82.  It felt too hot!

I wanted to paint in a cool spot right on the open water so I headed over to the Nubble in York Beach, Maine. The Nubble is this huge chunk of rock on the northern end of Long Sands Beach.  On the very end of this peninsula is a picturesque light house.  It sits on top of another smaller chunk of rock. 

When I got to the coast I needed to put on every piece of extra clothing I had in my car.  It was a chilly 60 degrees on the water! I was happy.

My polar tech vest was zipped to my chin and I wished I had packed my wool scarf.

The warm air temperature from the land and the cold ocean air were manufacturing fog where they collided.  

Way off in the distance over the water we could see a huge fog bank . 

I did a quick sketch of the light house.

6x12 oil on canvas

The tide turned and started to come in.  As that happened the fog bank started coming ashore.  

Soon the light house was only a faint ghost of its former self. The fog horn started blowing. 

I turned and started painting the large waves crashing against the rocks below me. 

Big waves, 6x8 oil on panel

The wind picked up. The fog got thicker. It got really cold. 

The fog was so thick and wet it was coating everything, my eye glasses were useless.  I could see the painting better without them.  Fog dripped off the tailgate onto my head. 

It wasn't even maximum high tide and the waves kept crashing in closer. A mixture of fog and salt spray filled the air. 

I put the last notes on my sketch. The moisture was dripping down the front of the easel on to my paints.

Time to clean up !

The wind was blowing harder and I was wishing I had a extra sweater to put on ! 

Even the tourists weren't hanging out in this chilly damp blast,  we had the place almost to ourselves.

The surf was really beautiful as it washed over huge shelves of rock along the edge of the Nubble. 

The wind tore my hat off my head as I stowed my paint box and easel. 

  I know why I live in Maine close to the Atlantic Ocean. There is nothing else like it.  Mystery, mood, atmosphere, drama, huge forces of nature, and that constantly changing scene on the edge of the continent.

Fog, Surf & Granite. 8x10 oil on panel

The Nubble, Motif #1

For class we sketched and painted at a beautiful location this evening. It is the most photographed light house on the Maine coast...maybe in the world! 

You can get really close to it. There is a deep chasm between the mainland and the island. 

We are having a hot July here, its in the 80's and 90's .  Lisa got there early and set up right away and got to work.  

Here's Deb sharing and reviewing her sketches from the past week.

Lisa showed the work she did during the week.

We look at each others work from the past week and discuss the challenges and our individual process before we start painting . This way everyone can get some feed back on difficulties and how they approached their individual plein air situations.  

  The discussion is getting in depth. These students are doing a lot of fast sketches in plein air involving people and animals. Real challenging! Everyone gains so much from viewing  all the different styles and approaches.

The light was changing fast as the sun set.

The clouds and sky were taking on all sorts of great color. Love these long summer evenings! 

Here's Marcus in deep concentration sketching. He's working on drawing in these classes as he's had much less experience than the others.

Lisa and Marcus moved to a new spot for a different view.   We are on the eastern side of a high rocky peninsula tucked down on the lower rocks. 

Deborah working away as the light departs.

Looked like she was alone. Right?  Ha!  There were piles of tourists from all over the world who were very quietly and politely watching what the artists were doing. 

Nancy is deeply focused on capturing the moment. 

Here's what the audience was viewing from behind Deborah. 

A whole group was behind Nancy getting this view and whispering and tiptoeing around her.  These guys all did a great job concentrating and painting in the midst of all this attention. Its not easy! 

The end of the day. And it just kept getting better even as it got dark.