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1. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - sea and sky.
I have pencilled in my sketch and started first with the sky. I wet the whole sky area, taking care not to go onto any of the buildings or the bass rock
then I washed in some greys and blues. They took on their own shape as they emerged into the wetted areas. Next I put in the sea
- I made the area pretty wet in some parts and sparse in others. I had a few blues and greys already wet in my palette and after wetting the area I immediately
got my brush and added them to the page. This gives the sea that moving effect. I have left white bits to represent the foam and breaking waves.
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2. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - sand and bushes.
I have put in a fairly light grey to bring out the shadows on the Bass and to add depth without making it jump off the page - I am trying to keep it subdued.
The building to the left is 2 toned and has been given it's coats and the sand is nearly the same tone. The bushes have been painted in with alot of light to them -
I want to keep the attention on the centre of the painting this time and not use too dark a tone on the edge - therefore keeping the eye inside the picture.
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3. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - roof tops and windows.
I have washed in a light covering for the roofs and the windows. I make sure not to complete the window panes as this will give the impression of light on the glass.
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4. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - sea wall and boat ramp.
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I have kept the paper wet and put in a slightly mottled stone wall and boat ramp. The wall will be edited later, but when it comes to stone
it is better not to overdo it and to make sure that it is visibly stone and not wood.
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5. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - cross and top of road.
I have now painted in the cross and added a dark horizontal line to define the road from the sea and the sky.
The rest of the stonework has been painted in lightly. I also removed some of the darkness from the stone. I have added the wooden fence and gate to the building on the right and given it some depth with a shadow.
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6. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - red roof of building and blue lifeboat door.
When putting in fine detail I tend not to wet the paper too much. It is better to have flow of paint in a larger area where it may take on it's own form and life,
but in a small detailed area it is better to keep things simple and plain. A red roof is washed in lightly and the blue door is added - tentatively at first - as the colour and depth must be spot on.
I don't want to distract from the power of the sea or compete too much with the contrasting red. The painting must be in harmony and to flow freely as your eye moves along the horizontal line.
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7. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - windows.
Defining the small details here - I make sure not to overwhelm the building and keep the lines unfinished and eneven.
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8. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - cross.
The cross makes a noticible change. It makes the bass rock really stand out with the contrast. Just taking some time to reflect on the progress so far. It is looking good and coming on well.
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9. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - windows on other building.
Now I am finishing off the windows on the other building. The painting is looking balanced, not too fussy.
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10. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - life boat house.
The dark detailing on the life boat house has now put the surrounding buildings into perspective. It is a noticible and important piece of architecture
for the harbour. There are metal railings infront of it but I prefer not to add to many small fussy bits in an already detailed painting.
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11. North Berwick Harbour with Bass Rock in distance - Finished.
After having a rest of a few days I am still happy with the painting and have made no changes. This painting is now finished and available for purchase. It will be on view at the Greens and Blues Gallery in North Berwick.
I hope you like my painting too and enjoyed sharing this journey.
If you would like to make this painting a part of your home or would like to commission a painting please go to my contact page to get in touch with me.
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