I've always been drawn to the sea and I love boats. This is a surprise even to me as I suffer badly from sea sickness. I don't know the reason for my fascination but it's there all the same. This scene has all the elements that make a beautiful painting. There's great depth from the sunset near the horizon, the glowing lights on the shore to the boat in the foreground. The colours are also pretty special with the coolness of the blue boat to the fiery orange in the evening sky. At first glance this lesson would appear to be more suitable for an advanced artist but I think that's only because of the fine brushwork needed on the boat. If you can get your "Rigger Brush" to behave itself and the paint thinned to the right consistency for the rigging, it's a good lesson for artists of all abilities.

Good luck,

Michael

Difficulty: Advanced
Panel Size: 12 x 16 inches
Brushes used in this lesson: Michael James Smith Professional Brush Set

In August 2019 Michael switched brush manufacturers and as a result the series numbers/names are different in some of the lessons. In order to be able to complete the lessons regardless of which set you’re using we have put together a chart which lists the equivalent brushes from both sets.

Oil Paints:
Titanium White
Cerulean Blue
French Ultramarine
Ivory Black
Dioxazine Purple
Cadmium Orange
Winsor Yellow
Permanent Rose
Burnt Umber
Alizarin Crimson
Prussian Blue
Winsor Lemon

Mediums / Thinners:
White Spirit