The sea hag swished her skirts then drapes them elegantly over dark rocks. Embracing the shore she pauses – then glides away, only to return again. Ah what a temptress. With the last light of a sunset sky caught in her folds, she lays the sea before us.
“Evening Sea” is painted on 100% natural cotton, 11X14 inches by one and a half inches.
View full resolution image here. (much more detail)
I do not have any process shots of “Evening Sea” beyond the initial underpainting that I shared earlier. It is one of those times that I settled in and painted until I was done and then fussed a bit around the edges the next day. This doesn’t happen often when painting but it did this time. I still look and see something that I might want to change but the roll of the sea is caught in the patterns of reflection and the movement is trapped in the paint showing through from underneath. So I don’t touch it. I leave it and watch the sea in its evening beauty.
Sprout Question: Can you tell us about a piece you created with ease?
Note: If anyone has any tips for photographing oil paintings, I am all ears (or eyes). They are much more difficult to get “true” then my watercolour paintings and I’m struggling a little with it – okay I’m struggling a lot (it took about 20 shots to get this the way I wanted it) but a person has to start someplace.
© 2010 Terrill Welch, All rights reserved.
Liberal usage granted with written permission. See “About” for details.
Purchase photography at http://www.redbubble.com/people/terrillwelch
Creative Potager – where imagination rules. Be inspired.
From Mayne Island, British Columbia, Canada
Creative Potager 
I think you captured the sea in all its sauciness… in the painting and with the photograph!
I find my creative muse allows me to photograph with ease most everything I set out to do, expect candids of family…
I have no real advise on photography for oil paintings, but I will check around… I think you have done well here… even it took 20 shots…
Thank you Jeff on all accounts. I will do a bit more research as well. It is almost like it needs something to defuse the light before it arrives on the canvas. My eye seems to edit some of glare and shadows out but the camera is picking it up. I am using natural lighting – as I don’t have studio lighting. So good to hear about your muse giving over photographs with ease:)
Terrill – The introduction to “Evening Sea” gave me wonderful goosebumps. “The sea hag swished her skirts …” vividly reflects what you have captured in oil.
Sprout Question: Can you tell us about a piece you created with ease?
A week from tonight I am keynote speaking for the Women’s Leadership Network. My presentation “The Seven Selves” came with ease. Let’s hope the delivery goes just as smoothly … http://wlnnews.com/
Congratulations Laurie on both the keynote and on its ease of creation… I have no doubt about your delivery… smooth or rough you will ride the waves with grace and ability… with just a wee splash of the sauciness Jeff mentioned when referring to “Evening Sea.” You will have to let us know how it goes… always fun to get the recap on “showings.”
Oh, so beautiful! I can only imagine how it must look in person. Wonderful movement of the water and foam.
In answer to your question:
I sometimes am blessed by a painting that almost “paints itself” I’m always in awe of that, because I know it doesn’t come from me. (Or perhaps the artist’s eye has to recognize the magic in order for it to come into being.)
One pair of paintings comes to mind. I did them together, as if they were to be one painting. I was in a room full of other painters and we were each doing our thing. Loud, lively music was playing on an old tape deck. I let the creative muse take over as I got into the music and started slapping paint onto the canvases. At one point I decided it needed some texture, so quite spontaneously I went outside and picked up some sand and sawdust where some workers were remodeling the building. I poured a small puddle of clear acrylic on each canvas and tossed in the sand and sawdust mixture. That was the finishing touch that made them sing! To this day they are my favorite paintings.
Martha, what a great story about your favorite paintings… do you have a link where we can visit them? If not that is okay, your word picture have my imagination creating the image for me. Martha, I consider you one of the artist in my personal artists mentors circle – a rather private circle as not everyone around my imaginary circle is still a living artist… if you know what I mean.
I invite readers to just scroll through your artists journal blog. I am always inspired each time I visit.
Terrill, these two paintings are on my website and here are both links:
http://marthabrooksmarshall.com/works/57661/channel-overlook
http://marthabrooksmarshall.com/works/57659/beside-the-channel
Thanks so much for asking, and for your wonderful words about our special artist connection. The feeling is mutual!
Oh yum! Martha, I got stuck over on your links clicking back and forth between the two paintings and when I wanted to come back here to reply to your comment, well lets just say I was surprised at how many times I had clicked:) You are most welcome… and glad to hear.
Will do, Terrill. Whether I throw up or wet my paths, I’m confident that someone will get a photograph!
You are going to be fine Laurie… and engaging, inspiring and memorable – because that is who you are.
You asked: Can you tell us about a piece you created with ease.
Well, this happened very unexpectedly. I was reading at a writers’ group. After I finished a fellow writer walked up to me.
She said, “Yeah, I read the piece you wrote about coming to terms with your dyslexia. And now I know, after listening to that piece, that you can write humour. So why don’t you write a YA novel. There’s many kids dealing with the same issues that you had to deal with.”
Well, her words stuck in her ear.
I’ve never thought of myself as a YA novelist.
My friend Amber Harvey writes in this genre very well.
However, I never saw myself as a writer in this genre.
Nevertheless, the words of this fellow writer took root.
In fact, the root was so deep that it left me with a headache. Complaining of a headached, I went to bed early.
I woke up early the next day and within a week (or two) I had written a YA novel. The main character is dylexic.
You don’t know when your muse will strike. So you should be ready at all times with a pen full of ink.
Ah Leanne another wonderful story in response to today’s sprout question. Yes and a pen filled with ink is always a find – particularly in our house where the full ones seem to grow legs and disappear at a gallop. Thanks for sharing:)
Hi there, Terrill. I suppose it’s still mid-afternoon there, and already evening stains its fingers across the land here.
What a cool picture! I cannot, in a hundred years, imagine what it takes to paint like that.
What do I create with ease? Blog-writing and blog-photography. they seem to arise so easily. When they don’t arise easily, I become uneasy. Whenever something doesn’t come with ease, I wonder if perhaps there is too much “self” in the process being too critical or involved or fussing.
My challenge usually comes later. After watching art being created through me…it’s always tempting to then somehow “own” it and get attached to it. If I can stay unattached and in a place of flowing, it feels so much better.
Great insight Kathy. Funny thing about “own” it. Sometimes it comes up for me and sometimes it doesn’t but I do tend to become attached… yes I am one of those crazy artist who often is convinced to sell a piece of work after the buyer has offered visiting rights. I know, I know! Yet, there are still a few I regret selling. I think these are the ones where piece of me flowed through and out with the muse for which I hadn’t yet detached from… they were released into the work with an umbilical cord. And since that part of my inner work still requires more gestation time… there we are – attached.
You’ve captured my favorite part of the ocean: the enveloping hush that shushingly banishes everything but.
Love the PNW ocean. Thanks for the moment of calm. 🙂
You are welcome Galen and welcome to Creative Potager. I took a very quick moment to browse your Six Minute Story adventure. How fascinating. I will be back a little later for a close read.
Glad you liked it! Your stories are welcome any time. 🙂
I will keep that in mind Galen… and thank you for the invitation:)
This is absolutely spectacular, and kudos to you for this remarkable creation. It looks really stunning in the added definition, so bristling that you can almost feel the strokes on the waves, which are practically three dimensional. This is simultaneously tranquil and in another sense a strain of foreboding too.
I am of course no artist myself (Though my 10 year-old Danny seems to be budding in this direction, and we are so thrilled!) so the “pieces” you speak of would have to do with my writing. While I love to write about my reactions to film, I do find it easier to write about opera and classical music, though like everyone else who embarks on their own favorite ventures, I am never satisfied. Ha!
Thank you Sam… yes the added definition really makes the difference on this one. I am glad you like it and great description. What a wonderful sprout response… I didn’t know that opera and classical reviews were your favourite. And yes I a truly familiar with never being satisfied – I have come to trust that not all my learning can be done in one piece… and I never (almost never) tell what it is I am not satisfied with because then that is all the other person can see as well and it ruins the magic for them. Might as well throw it in the scrap pile after doing something like that.
you have an amazing talent! i can almost imagine the sound of the waves just looking at your masterpiece.
Thank you happysole and I am so glad you came by. It gives me a perfect opportunity to point readers to your fantastic post “A Paradise called Carles” which was feature on wordpress today. Congratulations by the way.
For some reason I did not get notified of new post for this blog and I so look forward receiving them… I learn so much for your blog and from your creative artistic blog friends…
So here I am again.
Leanne, could you enlighten me as to what a YA writer is? It is most likely something simple but I am not picking it up.
I loved everyones story’s how amazingly wondrous they are!
Jeff I am so sorry that you didn’t get your notification today. I checked on my end and you are listed and nothing seems to be out of order. Hum, I hope the other subscribers got there notices.
I am going to let Leanne tell you what YA means and if she doesn’t pop back, I will send her an email for you.
And yes! The stories are sooooo “amazingly wondrous.” I am starting feel like we have this great hum of creativity flowing between us. Now what we must be mindful of is being welcoming and open to new readers and people commenting. But what a good thing to need to be mindful of. I am so very appreciative and grateful to all who participate in making Creative Potager what it is – a place where imagination rules… in a good way:))))))
A most wonderfull painting of the sea the energy of the waves and the colour are just spot on, there is nothing quite like the magic of the sea and you capture it on canvas for us to enjoy,thank you
Thank you for your feedback Chris and you are welcome. This canvas was such a pleasure to paint. So glad you stopped in:)))
What a beautiful painting Terrill! You are such a creative soul and I do love all the ways you express it. The photo of your painting on Redbubble looks very awesome! You must have tweaked it somehow for it shows the detail very well.
Many times I’ll work on a painting and it seems to spring from that magical place that I tap into and before I realize it…it’s done! The trick for me is to walk away from my creation and let it be and then when I return I know whether to add more paint or not. Usually when I thought I was done…I was. 🙂 Not sure if that makes sense or not! LOL
Thanks Itaya. No I didn’t tweak the one on redbubble but it is uploaded in full resolution. The one on wordpress for some reason just won’t pull the clarity through to the post. I uploaded it twice (it must be at low resolution to load) and it looks fine before I post it and then it keeps coming out blurry. The best I could do is make a note to go to the redbubble image.
Itaya I know exactly what you mean about “the done” thing. I sometimes force my self to go back in and fix little niggly things if it isn’t going to ruin the energy of the painting. Great sprout!
often when i have had a difficult time fore one reason or another and i dont want to paint at all i have the most easily flowing painting. my most recent example would be #draw365 drawing 129 http://flic.kr/p/7QHFCN
i could not get myself to draw at all that day and it was my scheduled painting time so i did some drawing with my oils. once i started painting the first line it was an almost physical sensation of a weight lifting off my shoulders.
Jerry what you share is a profound lesson about creative discipline (or maybe it is just a profound lesson of discipline). Whatever the case may be, getting our bum in the chair and our hands on the keyboard, or holding the pen, or brush or the camera on our shoulder…. once we begin well it is as you say “a weight lifting from [our] shoulders. Great sprout response and thanks for sharing one of your outstanding drawings.
An art teacher once told me that he painted at the same time every day. And as that time approached his mind started composing and thinking as a painter. This is something I see in your work Jerry. This fluidity and sureness that comes when a hand can execute the artist’s direction without checking to see what gear they are in.
The waves seem to roll and swirl right off the canvas. To capture the mood of the waves is quite the challenge…you did a marvelous job.
It moves and I just love the colors you used.
Really beautiful!
I’m so glad I popped in, thanks luv.
Mumstheword I am so pleased you dropped in too and thank you for your feedback.
I am so happy you linked us to the high resolution… that is a total work of art. It speaks! I could feel your presence in the work so I had some tea and just enjoyed it splashing through my screen.
When I shoot product shots for the web, I shoot outdoors and just use God Lighting which is more filtered with clouds or a shade tree…no flash and it usually turns out. Thanks for this sharing.
Kathy thank you so much for your feedback AND your photographing tip. I have found some things on line as well which will go along with your natural light suggestion. Once I have tested a few ideas out. I will do up a blog post and share.
Love your impressionism Terrill, you’ve captured the movement and richness of the sea. Simply gorgeous!
Thank you Jeannie… it wasn’t until I started doing so reading recently that I fully understood that impressionism principles are what I use when painting – right down to mixing many of my colours on the canvas as I paint. I do some of the same things with water colours as well but there isn’t as much control of the end result.
So Beautiful, Terrill! The movement, grace, and Gorgeous colours.. inspirational! Thanks for sharing your gifts!
Thank you Antonia and you are welcome:)
Beautiful colors and composition in this piece! Keep up the great work!
Thank you:)