These paintings were going to be called KI Colours (1&2). My vision was of acid green biting into the aquamarine of the sea. The low bushes pinned by the wind to the coastline are shades of warm green with yellowish highlights. I have a strong memory of standing at Remarkable Rocks and seeing orange lichen on the rocks, the light bright sea blue with those distant warm greens. But that’s another painting, for another time.
Here are the two small paintings so far. I lost my nerve a bit with the acid green. It is actually still there, but mostly under the surface!
The two pictures were painted side by side in the early stages, really just to ensure their alignment. Because I wanted them to work individually as well as together they were completed as separate paintings. These two will be going over to Kangaroo Island for the KI Art Feast which opens the weekend after next. More on that later.
Pennington Bay is a long and wild beach on the Southern Ocean side of Kangaroo Island, not too far from the Penneshaw ferry terminal. The turn-off is easy to miss. It’s just another dirt track heading off to the left, but once on it you know that dirt tracks on KI are much more than that. The limestone is white as white can be, the dust is very fine and the low scrub closely hugs the edges of the road.
A couple of k’s and you are there. And then….that vista! The craggy rocks, the headlands and the long sweep of wild surf and white sand all stop you in your tracks. And of course that wonderful mixture of greens sewn to the surface of the land, contrasting with the sea blues and white seaspray…
The roar of the wild! Do you have a favourite spot like this? Does it roar or sing?
I like seeing the early drafts, and how they have finished. I think they look really good together. It sounds a great place and quite a gem. I really enjoyed this post P, best wishes, V x
Yes, the early bits add to the story don’t they. Until I started blogging I hadn’t realised that. Thanks V for your interest and support, P.
Your paintings, as always, blow my mind. They remind me of the west coast of northern Vancouver Island (B.C. Canada) where the sea is always tumultuous, stormy and unpredictable. The beaches are filled with ocean formed and strange rock formations and at low tide offer fascinating observations of sea life trapped in rock pools. The always present misty and mysterious sea evokes prehistoric feelings as one walks the beaches….
That sounds a bit like Kangaroo Island’s south coast. Your description is very evocative, like a walk in itself! Thanks for your comments.
Although I live by the sea, our sea is by an estuary so we don’t get the different blues and greens in the water; however I’ve just been staying by the sea in Ireland where the water is clear and bright, and the vegetation green and lush…. so I doubly appreciate your pics! I love them because they are really good, wonderful, but also they really capture the colours so perfectly, and bring memories of Ireland alive! great work! Thanks for sharing (it’s also fascinating to see how you work, most interesting!)
Ooh thanks Lois! So glad to hear they have struck a chord with you. Your comments are over-the-top wonderful.
The salty breeze roaring through your wonderful scenes takes me back to so many memories, almost as though I could be anywhere but the waves and the waters always catch up with me, wherever I am.
Yes, that salty breeze is so familiar – timeless and universal isn’t it? The seashore also gives me a strong sense of connection with people far away. Thanks for your poetic comments Patti.