Thalassic Swell

18”x24” on stretched canvas.
Acrylic paint, various papers.

Thalassic swell stems from my childhood spent on the mid-north coast
of N.S.W., Australia. The power of the waves crashing against the rocks
is something that has always left me in awe of nature. The persistence
of the ocean slowly wears away at the strength of the rocks, turning
them into the soft sandy beaches. This transitory act of nature inspires
me.

I started this piece by collaging various textured papers to the canvas. I then started washes of colour, originally planning a dawn scene, with a quiet ocean, using reds yellows and oranges. The quiet ocean didnt gel well with the large rock outcrop, so i added some waves- which in turn clashed with the sunrise in the sky!. I then darkened the sky and turned it into a blue dawn, with little flecks of stars in the sky.

I actually did alot of this painting using my fingers, applying a separate colour to each finger and then brushing my fingers lightly across the surface of the painting to apply the paint. It was alot of fun, and allowed me to "feel" the right places to put the paint.