Pandemic Painting #36 for a weekend’s worth of calming influence.
The Indiana Dunes along Lake Michigan have long been a calming influence for me. While it’s getting tougher to hike my beloved dunes the older I get (have you TRIED walking in “sugar sand” up a hill in the heat of summer?) I find painting them can calmly transport me there. In that regard, I’m a lucky soul.
Once the cooling September winds come along, I plan on getting out on the dunes trails. The Indiana Dunes National Park’s west end includes West Beach, the very area where I grew up. This painting is from one of my photos from West Beach.
I shook things up a little by using my French Sennelier watercolors for this one. They are infused with honey as part of the pigment binder and while they flow nicely and keep semi-moist in my palette, I think the honey reduces the intensity of the pigment. On the other hand, they have more colors than Winsor & Newton but I think I’ll only use them occasionally. I painted this one primarily with a big #12 round and a tiny #1 spotter, paying particular attention to detail.
Hope y’all are staying safe.