Yachts

8” x 10”
Watercolor (Qor watercolor on Arches rough)
Chris Breier © 2015

The original painting is available.
I took the reference photographs for this painting late in the day when the shadows were long and the sunlight was warm in color. What caught my attention was the way that the sun illuminated the grass and how I could use the green grass to contrast with the blue/purples. The long shadows add some directional lines in the painting and I used dry brushing to emphasize the texture of the gravel parking lot. I have painted this boatyard before, it's located near the grain elevators and the Skyway-which can be seen in the background.

I used Cerulean Blue for the sky along with a mixture of Phthalo Blue and Quinacridone Magenta to create the purple tint to the undersides of the clouds. I prefer using Cerulean Blue for blue skies because it's a granulating pigment and the texture adds interest to what would normally be a flat area of color. The greens are made from Hansa Yellow Medium and Phthalo Green which yields a very unnatural vivid green but it can be toned down with purple or a small amount of Quinacridone Magenta.