Seasoned By The Sea

6"x8" oil on Belgian linen mounted on archival panel

"The cure for anything is salt water - sweat, tears, or the sea." ~Isak Dinesen

Today was incredibly warm for February in New England, upper 40s. So of course I was determined to go out first thing to the shore line. Moody skies are always an attraction at this time of year, but it's certainly nice to not be knee deep in snow! Lots of things still going on in the home-front, so I've been keeping most of my paintings small lately. I carried my tiny little pochade box just to keep things easy, in case it was colder than I thought. So I worked with brushes. This box has an edge that holds the panel in, and it's not very conducive to painting with a knife (no free edges on the panel). So, I'm a firm believer in using the best tools for the circumstances. This provided a "quick-sketch" to consider color, etc. for a larger painting. Outdoor sketches done with this sort of speed, are good for the equivalent of "note-taking" to be developed further.