Cerulean Sea and Sky at Topsail

Why Cerulean Sea and Sky at Topsail? I’m so glad you asked and I can not wait to describe the colorful reasons to you today. But first, here are some quick facts about this blog. This is a place where, each week, I share my paintings and inspiration plus an occasional dose of art history. Whether this is your first or millionth visit here, hiya, hello and a warm welcome! I choose a theme to guide my paintings each year. To read about this year’s painting theme, check the description in this link here. To subscribe and get a weekly dose of color for yourself, subscribe here. Now let’s get to the colorful focus of this week’s painting. OK?

Cerulean Blue Early Adopter

Cerulean Blue is a relatively new blue. It was available, finally, as an oil paint in the 1870s. Claude Monet used it and with great success. Here’s his painting “La Gare Saint-Lazare.” He rented an apartment near the station so he could easily get to and paint the station.

I love the way he used Cerulean blue to show the puffs coming from the train! Interestingly, Monet did not always have Cerulean Blue on his palette. In fact, he said “As for the colors I use, what’s so interesting about that ? I don’t think one could paint better or more brightly with another palette. The most important thing is to know how to use the colors.” Why is this relevant? Read on!

What is the Best Blue

Artists can debate color and the best options till, well, the cows comes home. But, I’m delighted to share that the best answer to this question is one that my economics professor would always say, “It all depends!” And, please don’t ask me what the economics question was. Even though that was my major, those details are long gone. ;-D

But, in the “Best Blue Debate,” it seems to me the best answer really is “it all depends.” If I’m painting outdoors, it depends on the light at any given second. If I’m painting indoors, you guessed, it depends on the light, even the paint on the walls and ceiling.

Topsail Island in the Spring

Earlier this year, I toted my paints, pup and a pal to one of my favorite places on earth: Topsail Island. Each day, I got up and walked the pup to the end of the island and back before starting to paint. The nifty, down to earth motel where we stayed has a covered deck just perfect for plein air painting all day long. And, that’s what I did.

I brought the paintings back home and gave them the “time and attention” treatment that is this year’s theme. What does that mean? I set them aside. I painted other paintings. Then this week I decided to take another look at them.

Why? Well, partly because today is the Summer Solstice and I have a hankering to be at the beach. Also, rain is in the forecast for the entire week. Solution? Take another look at some of the paintings from that trip. Here’s the first one!

Cerulean Sky and Sea at Topsail Painting

Oooh la la I had fun adding a few more details to this painting. I actually could smell the salty air and imagine the spray from the waves on my face. And, cerulean blue, symbol of peace, serenity and the official color of the United Nations Logo, guided the way in this week’s painting. Here it is. Oh and it’s nifty and small: just 4 inches by 8 inches. And yes it’s for sale for $89 + $6.45 tax + $15 shipping = $110.45. To make it your very own, simply PayPal.me here.

More Colorful News

If you live near Raleigh, North Carolina, I will be hosting an artist “meet and greet” at the Cafe Gallery at NOFO @ The Pig in Five Points, 2014 Fairview Road, near downtown Raleigh on Saturday, July 8th from 10:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The show will be up from July 5 through August 6 and includes 10 of my paintings all framed and ready to hang on the wall.

That’s Enough About Blue

How about you, gentle reader? What places do you like to visit in the summer time? Do you have a favorite island or beach? If you do, I would love to hear from you. Please share in the comments below!