Painting Month: Day 5 Recap

For day 5 of painting month, I went up to Point Reyes, CA and made a painting at Heart’s Desire Beach. I planned to also go to Point Reyes Lighthouse but I ran out of time. I’ll add that to my list of future locations to paint. Noting here that I’m 0/2 for lighthouses.

Heart’s Desire Beach

I had never been to Heart’s Desire but it came highly recommended. When I arrived, I could see why. Amazing views in every direction:

I tested out a few different compositions but finally landed on this one (I always start by sketching it out to make sure it will work):

Open sketchbook held up against the bay, pen thumbnail blocking in the wooded point, water, and far hills.

This painting came together fairly quickly. While I would definitely add more detail for a studio painting, I’m pleased with how this one came together:

Pochade box on a tripod at the beach, panel toned in orange-red underpainting, mixed colors laid out on the palette below.

Close-up of the panel with a blue-gray sky blocked in, one dark tree silhouette, and thin red lines marking the composition's shapes.

Pochade box on the beach, painting progressed further with olive tree masses, tan shoreline, and pale water now blocked in.

Pochade box on the beach in low sun, painting nearly resolved with golden-lit trees, hills, and water, brushes and a cup at the tripod's base.

Close-up of the finished oil painting: golden trees on a sandy point, calm water, and green hills across the bay in warm light.

If there was one thing I could fix (and I just might), the shape of the closest land mass is really rectangular. I would like to improve the outer edge by making it more irregular and organic.