Plein air painting in Grand Cayman…done from inside out :-)

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So in all the family excitement during my 10-day visit to Cayman, it wasn’t until the last day that I found the opportunity to sit and pastel. Of course there was the frantic decision – what to paint? what to paint? – but I had been eyeing the beauty of some seagrape trunks through the doors, so it just made sense to choose that as my subject matter. I wanted to do a plein air painting and now I had the chance.

 

Here’s the process. These photos were taken with my phone so aren’t that brilliant – apologies.

 

1. My initial thumbnail sketches. Pretty raw but they helped me sort out what it was I wanted to capture (yes, only I would know it from that sketch!)

 

2. Charcoal sketch on Wallis paper

 

3. The first pastels being laid in. I didn’t follow my usual laying in of only three colours/values this time. I preferred to just get into the rainbow of colours right away (still following a value pattern mind you)

 

4. Now the feeling of light and shade begins to emerge.

 

5. “Seagrape Shadows”, 12 x 9 in, pastel on Wallis paper. The plein air painting is complete and I felt pretty good about it!

 

6. The Sennelier pastels I used. Pretty dirty at this stage.

 

Mum caught me as I was finishing up. You can see the tree trunks I was painting beyond.

 

7. Sort of plein air painting ….not quite the hardship of painting in the open I’ll admit. But you wouldn’t have known if I hadn’t told/shown you. So I’ll consider it plein air painting although I’m not actually outside. Will you back me up on this one??!

 

So, I think that’s it for this time.

 

Thanks for sharing the journey 🙂

 

~ Gail

 

 

PS. Okay, so our trip home didn’t go as smoothly as we’d like. Approaching Toronto, we started circling…… We were diverted to Hamilton due to a freak snowstorm over Toronto airport and a VERY long story short, due to the delay, we were able to spend a day with my sister and her family in Ontario before heading home to the West Coast. Great silver lining!!

 

Photo of the Map screen in front of each seat. We landed in Hamilton, the area just under the ‘t’ in the word ‘Burlington’. (The line going from the plane to Toronto is the route it should have taken but the weather dictated, no can do.)

 

View from Andrea’s house at the lake …a bit different from the tropical temperatures we’d just left!

 

5 thoughts on “Plein air painting in Grand Cayman…done from inside out :-)”

  1. Beautiful who would havethought you could change that bunch of squiggles into a fine work of art you are a magician Congatulations.

  2. Kathie Smithson

    Love, love, love it Gail. You are such a wonderful inspiration! Is there a possibility you will be giving another workshop on Salt Spring? Just asking.

    Warmly,

    Kathie

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