Thursday, May 23, 2013

Manasota Key Beach

Diane Mannion, Manasota Key Beach, 8x10" oil on linen, 100% plein air

Painted with the Englewood Plein Air Painters this morning... a hardy group, planning on painting all summer regardless of heat and sweaty weather.  Wonderful meeting so many artists pushing brushes and loving it.  I had painted with them for years but because of some weird email glitch... lost touch.  Won't let them go again!  And it was delightful painting next to Penny and watching her playful sense of design.

I've gotten into the habit of doing thumbnail sketches before I attack the surface with paint.  It helps me see what to focus on and how the darks and lights will form the compostion.  Also lets me know what to leave out, in this case, garbage bins on the left!  Here's the thumbnail:

2 comments:

Maria Bennett Hock said...

Love the soft colors and brush strokes in this one. I also love the thumbnail sketch...I usually do a sketch and it helps me immensely with placement of everything. So nice to work out kinks before I do the actual piece.

Diane Mannion said...

Thank you, Maria! You are right about the thumbnail sketch! Have only recently started making a habit of them... and realize how important they are. Helps to SEE the pattern and values of the painting ahead of time.