Another river project: I sketched this stretch of river last summer on a sunny evening
and intended producing something along those lines this year. The scene was different,
of course, the weather saw to that, and I was more aware of the rumble of heavy traffic
on the A12 highway than before.
The banded demoiselles flutter between the midstream lily flowers and the bankside vegetation, a slight breeze blows through the trees and the light becomes that heavy, gloomy light that often precedes rain. The first few spots cause ripples in the water.
Then a drop lands on your cheek. A summer shower arrives.

On a large sheet of stretch paper I started out drawing the basic shapes with sepia ink, overlaying this with blocks of colour. In the photo you can see where I drew over this again in chalk to revise some of the shapes.

The picture I eventually produced takes a different direction entirely, and has become more of a straightforward studio painting of the scene, that moment just before the rain starts. The highway traffic is included, as its presence is impossible to ignore, mainly beause of the sound (top right of the picture).

I liked the fresh lively blocks of colour and the freedom with which I started the picture, now lost under the layers of paint, so I started another version, this time limiting the colours. Very much work in progress but I like the mood the colours give and the free brush strokes and scraping back keep it lively and fresh.