February Gold

Oil on fine linen. I had been painting down on this beach earlier in the afternoon with a friend and when we walked back up to the parking lot I turned to take a look and I saw the last rays of sunlight hitting the rocky coast and I thought "Wowza!" that's what I want to paint. So I came back the next evening with the right size and shaped canvas and got to work. I went back each sunny evening over the course of several weeks. We had a mild February here in New England and although there were some cold evenings with a wind blowing off the sea there was no snow. Dogs are forbidden on this beach in summer but in the off season it is a favorite spot for walkers so I added a few people with their dogs to capture the seasonal feel of the location and to give scale to the landscape.