Path to the Beach (Oil Bar Painting Day 5)

Path to the Beach (Oil Bar Painting Day 5)
Originally uploaded by randubnick

Today I worked on this painting of a path to the beach (based on a photo that I took at Beverly's Lynch Park). First, I adjusted the line at the end of the path to correct a persistent optical illusion that made it the line look crooked even though my trusty T-square said otherwise. (I fixed this by over-correcting the line, tilting it slightly in the opposite direction.) Then I continued to work with my T-square and a brush to add lines in the water and make sure the horizontal lines were parallel. Then I corrected the shapes of the boats on the left side and added color to them. I also added yellow to the highlights on the path and to the grass, and also added some subtle touches of red to the grass, to bring the colors of the boats into the rest of the painting. Then I worked on the texture of the sandy path, working closely from the reference photo (posted here April 15) as I added shadows in shades of purple. Finally I added subtle touches of blue to the sand, tapping on some blue with my fingertip (leaving fingerprints instead of footprints). I think this is painting is finished, or close to it (which is good because I need to get everything ready for the art show). There might still be changes, but if so, I think they are likely to be small.