Mendocino Sundance

Painted from a plein air study that I did in Mendocino this past September. I was captivated by the golden light and this magical moment. I captured the color notes as accurately as possible with the sinking sun on a 6" x 8" panel. I was happy with the color notes and knew that this had the potential to work well as a larger painting. In the studio painting, I composed the design to have the sky be the big statement and the beautiful cool tones of the breaking wave to be a lovely accent. I love how the elements of water, sky and land, all have a specific color temperature that is a pleasing contrast yet harmonious. I felt as if I was in the scene when I painted it and worked a lot from my memory. I wanted the viewer to actually feel as if they could hear the ocean and feel the air.