PLEIN AIR SOUTHWEST SALON QUICKLY APPROACHING

"Missy M" 10" x 20" oil/linen plein air

The deadline for entering the Plein Air Southwest Salon show is quickly approaching...January 6th to be specific. Stepping totally out of character I have actually had my entries done for a couple of months. This one I did in October during the Coastal Paintout in Port Aransas. The "Missy M" is very familiar to me in that I have bought bait from this particular bait store for many years. Located in the Conn Brown Harbor in Port Aransas I could always count on finding bait here when everyone else was out.

I painted this scene while standing in the shade of an abandoned fish market across the harbor. I've painted the "Missy M" a few times so when I chose to do a larger canvas just to see if I could handle the pressure of doing something this complicated in a short amount of time (2.5 hours) I already knew the subject matter which made my color choices a little easier.

I find boats difficult to paint because of the curves in the bow and the reflections in the water are always a challenge. It amazes me how dark a white boat reflects in the water. On this particular day there was a bit of wind so relections were at a minimum. Anyway this is one of my entries into Plein Air Southwest Salon.

For any plein air painters out there reading this blog I highly recommend entering Plein Air Southwest Salon 2012. The show is an online plein air competition with some of the very best plein air painters in the country participating. The show opens April 7, 2012 in Dallas, Texas at Souhwest Gallery. Paintings are limited to plein air paintings only completed in the 2011 calendar year. For more information og www.paswsalon.com.