Painting seascapes is a fun subject to paint. Breaking waves, sea spray, surf, light, rocks and dramatic weather are all great ingredients to create an epic and engaging seascape painting.
In this article I will show you how to paint this seascape that features a breaking wave, a rocky shore and dramatic light.
I painted this art work in oils but you could just as easily paint this using acrylics.
Reference Photo
Here is one of the reference photos I took and used for this painting. Please feel free to use or copy this photo if you would like to paint this art work.
Composition
The composition in this painting follows an ‘S’ composition where the channel between the rocks in the foreground leads the eye towards the translucent breaking wave. The breaking wave is the main area of interest in the painting.
The ‘S’ composition implies rhythm in the painting.
Colours
The colours I used in this painting are as follows:
- Titanium white
- Burnt sienna
- Yellow ochre
- Cadmium yellow
- Cadmium red
- Alizarin crimson
- Ultramarine blue
- Phthalo green
Brushes
Here is a list of the brushes I used in this painting:
- No.5 flat
- No.3 flat
- No.2 flat
- No.3 filbert
- No.1 round
- No.0 round
Painting Demonstration
Stage 1 — Blocking-In The Painting
I am painting on a 8” x 8” linen panel. The linen is an oil primed medium weave linen that is mounted to Baltic birch.
I sketch the composition using a №1 round brush and burnt sienna mixed with Liquin Original (Liquin). I am using Liquin as a medium to thin the paint and it also has the advantage of speeding up the drying time.
During the blocking-in process I am using loose painterly brush marks and I am mainly using №5 and №3 flat brushes.
Whenever I begin a painting I always identify where the dark values are in the scene that I am painting. Value refers to how light or dark a subject is and we will find our darkest darks and our lightest lights in the foreground of a landscape. However as landforms recede into the distance dark values are not as dark and lights are not as light as the value scale narrows.
By painting the dark values and shadows first you can quickly create a tonal dynamic in your painting which makes it easier to paint the areas in light afterwards.
I begin by painting the cloud shadows using a mix of ultramarine blue, burnt sienna, titanium white and a little alizarin crimson.
The shadows in the rocks are the darkest values in this seascape especially as they are in the foreground. I paint the rock shadows using a mix of ultramarine blue and burnt sienna.
Now that I have marked in the major areas of shadows I begin painting the areas in light starting from the background and working forward.
I paint the clouds with a mix of titanium white and a little burnt sienna.
The sky is a mix of ultramarine blue, titanium white and a little phthalo green.
I paint the sea and waves with varying mixes of ultramarine blue, titanium white, phthalo green and yellow ochre. The translucent area of the wave is a mix of titanium white, phthalo green and yellow ochre.
For the water and foam areas that are in shadow I have used varying mixes of ultramarine blue, burnt sienna, titanium white and alizarin crimson.
I add more colour to the rocks and paint the reflected light on the rock surfaces. The reflected light is coming from the surrounding water so it has a blue cast to it.
For the rocks I use a mix of ultramarine blue, burnt sienna, titanium white and alizarin crimson. I have also used these same colours in the foreground water and clouds which is going to tie all of these zones together and create colour harmony within the painting.
I paint the highlights on the breaking waves and white water with a mix of titanium white and burnt sienna. I’m keeping the value of this colour a little darker so that when I add my final highlights at the end of the painting the waves will pop!
I paint the areas of the rocks that are in the full sunlight. For the rocks on the left I used a mix of burnt sienna, titanium white with a little ultramarine blue and alizarin crimson.
For the other rocks I have used a mix of burnt sienna, yellow ochre, ultramarine blue and titanium white.
Stage 2 — Adding Details and Refining the Painting
Once the painting was dry I began adding details to it. I’m now using smaller brushes including №3 flats and filbert brushes.
I add more layers to the clouds, foam and white water using titanium white with just a small amount of burnt sienna, ultramarine blue and alizarin crimson. I’m keeping the value of the colour a little darker, saving my lightest values until the end of the painting.
I paint more details in the water in the foreground adding ripples and foam patterns.
Here is where I’m getting into the modelling stage where I am building up the various forms within the painting.
I add details and shape the rocks on the left side of the painting, emphasising the cracks and paint some highlights on the sunlit rock surfaces.
Stage 3 — Final Details
At this point in the painting I had let it dry once again so that I could add the final details.
I paint highlights on the breaking waves and white water using a mix of titanium white with a dash of yellow ochre. I sparingly apply the highlights which really brings the waves to life. I use this same colour mix to paint the highlights on the rocks.
I finish up the painting by adding the foam patterns to the waves using a mix of ultramarine blue, titanium white and a little alizarin crimson. I also use the same colour mix to paint reflected light in the waves and the spills over the rocks.
Thanks for reading.
