Last weekend we opened up the island house for the summer - of course it was cold, windy, rainy, the seas were up. Little to encourage us that summer is indeed upon us, but things happen fast once spring arrives. People always assume I get a lot of painting done in the summer, but it just isn't true. We share the time with lots of family and friends, and the work seems (actually, is) endless. But I carve out bits of time. My big aha! moment was when I decided to set up to paint in the same location every time, eliminating the wandering around to find the "perfect" painting each time I ventured out. With the changing weather, tides and time of day the same spot is never the same. That's part of what makes Maine such a visually exciting place to be. So the image above is a photograph from our little pocket beach, taken two weeks ago on a reconnaissance trip to the island to see what the winter had wrought. And below are three paintings done en plein air of the selfsame rocks. And there you have it.

Some progress this week. I decided to rough in the background trees with teal blue and purple to start developing atmospheric perspective. To enhance the feeling of a light fog burning off, I plan to glaze over the sky and these trees once this newest paint layer is dry.

My exhibit at the Yarmouth History Center's Stonewall Gallery has been extended for two weeks, until June 5.