Stages From Start To Completion of Kalk Bay Moorings Painting

I am back in action folks. This is Stage 1 of the 5th painting in my Iconic Places in South Africa collection, and is of Kalk Bay which is quite a popular tourist destination in the Western Cape.  I have decided with this one that I am not going to fill in too much of the detail in the drawing at this stage, but have rather laid out the basic shapes, after which I will paint in the background buildings. In case you are wondering what the grids are there for, they simply help me to set out the composition correctly, because there is quite a lot of detail in this painting as well. Next I will be painting in the darker elements up to the mid-tones. As always, I enjoy sharing the process with you from start to completion. As part of the marketing course that Jess is busy with, she is getting set up to be able to do videos, so that sometime in the near future, you will be able to watch me on video.

In Stage 2 I have started painting in the darker shapes in the background and have done the outlines of the buildings and boats. Next I will be simultaneously building all the elements up to the mid-tones, after which the highlights will come.

In Stage 3 I have added some more of the background shapes and buildings, and have worked on the sky and mountain. Next I will be adding in the water, after which I will bring everything up to the mid-tones. It always seems that us artists need to choose the reference that inspires us, in the hope that it will resonate with our fans, followers and collectors as well.

Most people may not notice when the drawing aspect isn't correct, but I do my friends. So in Stage 4 I did have a few corrections to do which for me makes all the difference to the overall composition.  I also started putting in the water. There are no hard and fast rules when it comes to that, but my approach was to use horizontal strokes in the under painting, and then I crisscrossed the second layer with both vertical and horizontal strokes. Next will come the reflections which will be vertical strokes to accentuate the direction that they are running. Another 2 stages and this painting will be complete!

In Stage 5 I continued to work on the water crisscrossing horizontal and vertical strokes, and will then be adding the reflections. I have also put in some of the finer details on the boats and buildings and the mountain. The next time you see this painting it will be completed!

It is finished my friends! This is the 5th painting in my Iconic Places In South Africa collection. As always, I welcome your thoughts and comments on all my blogs!