While on Salt Spring Island, I ventured to Ruckle Park to try my hand at plein air painting. I lugged around a large backpack, full of art supplies, from coloured pencils to paints. I wasn’t sure what would strike me, or how I might want to recreate it.
The forest was alive with mature trees and thick green foliage. As I walked the path I could see glimpses of the ocean. I must have walked for 45 minutes before I found a place where I could get out onto the ledge of a rock to view the sea.
I sat down and pulled out my sketchpad, took a deep breath, and started drawing. I felt like a “real” plein air artist, having to contend with the wind, the change in clouds, the shift of light and shadow as the sun moved. But what a wonderful experience! It didn’t matter what I did on the paper, the point was that I was outside, planted on a rock facing the sea! I could hear the ocean and the seagulls, and feel the wind on my face, and smell the briny air…
The top image is what I started outside and then later finished in the cabin. The bottom image is a stylized version of the same scene.
