STEP 13 WHEW!

The buildings are finally done. Wow, there are certainly a lot of windows in Portofino. And it looks as if they all have a great view. It was fun painting the overhanging awnings and the people strolling along the harbor, enjoying the beautiful day. After I get the canvas completely covered I will probably go back and add a few finishing touches on the buildings, boats and water. The large white areas on the canvas make it hard to accurately judge the final values at this stage.

Here I have started blocking in the trees directly below the foreground terrace. One of the key rules in painting is you can’t have light without dark. The light will pour in behind the dark mass of these trees to light up the harbor.

I must say, this is one of my all time favorite shirts. Jack has one just like it, we got them on our first trip to Hawaii almost 20 years ago. They are made by JAMS in Hawaii and we call them our “Van Gogh Shirts.”  I was wearing this shirt when Jack threatened to throw me off the cliffs of Maui if I didn’t agree to spend the rest of my life with him! What does this have to do with painting? Absolutely nothing, just thought you’d like to know.

See you tomorrow, Mikki Senkarik

P.S. You can read more of our story at http://www.senkarik.com