Wandering around a quiet local harbour, I saw these dinghies tied up to a landing stage. The bright sunshine that day created strong shadows and the water was still and as dark as ink. Looking at the scene from an artist's point of view, the main thing I noticed was the rhythmic pattern set up by the boats. Then there was the range of colours, made up equally between cool blues on one hand and warm beiges, oranges and browns on the other.
I'll be honest - not long after I started this painting, I kind of lost my way and thought it wasn't going to work, so I stopped. It had something to do with the look of the water, which I hadn't got quite right. Three weeks later, I took a fresh look at the painting and realised it wasn't as bad as I'd feared. So I restarted it, deepened and darkened the blue water, and took it to completion. I feel satisfied with it now. It just goes to show, you shouldn't abandon a painting too soon. Give it (and yourself) a rest, come back to it later, and maybe have another go at it.
