Deserted Dune, Orleans MA, part one

We seem to be locked into a pattern of perpetual gray skies and rain... today's antidote to dull weather is to pull out some photos of a Cape Cod beach on a sunny morning. These photos are from early April 2017, and the painting combines elements of two photos -- one showing a weathered, split-rail fence along the edge of a parking area at the First Encounter Beach, in Orleans. For compositional interest, the fence photo is flipped so that, in the painting, it runs in an opposite diagonal to the sloping dune. The second photo of a sloping dune with grasses and scrubby brush casting shadows, will need some creative additions -- perhaps a weathered Adirondack chair or a small section of broken-down fence. The painting is done in a limited palette: Cobalt Blue, French Ultramarine, Mineral Violet, Yellow Ochre, Burnt Umber, Sepia, and Shadow Green. Only two brushes are needed so far  -- both pointed rounds -- #8 and #14; later I'll use a 1/4" flat for the fence details and a #4 rigger for the dune grasses. The paper is Saunders Waterford 200 lb., cold press -- heavy enough to stand up to watery washes and requiring tape only on the corners.

Reference photos