Pastels in Ireland Part 5: Another Beautiful Beach, Rosslare

'Dance There Upon the Shore'           9x12        pastel       ©Karen Margulis
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Once again the beach surprised me. This time it was Rosslare. I don't know what I expected but I was excited to get off the bus and see dunes covered in wildflowers. There was plenty for me to paint here! But it was quite windy and not really conducive to using my Heilman box on the tripod. Sharon and I were quick though and found a couple of benches out of the wind. We decided to sit and put our easels down low. It was a perfect solution. I had a perfect view of the dunes and proceeded to paint several dune studies.

There were many families on holiday at the beach and when the sun was out it really felt nice. In fact one of the artists painting with us had worn her bathing suit and took a dip in the sea. Too cold for me. I had on a few layers but not a bathing suit!

It was nice enough for a swim.....too cold and windy for me though!

'Through the Dunes'       5x7      pastel     $95

Over the dunes!

After a few productive hours it started getting blustery. We decided to break for lunch. It was a good decision because it was time for rain! Fortunately for us the sun came back out as soon as we were done with lunch so we found a new spot on the beach near an pile of rocks. A new and interesting view! The skies were getting interesting with storms on the horizon.

For the afternoon painting session I set out my Monkey Mat on the sand. I found some great rocks for weights and sat down to paint. It was time for the single Heilman box with my Giraults. I painted a few more studies from this spot. I really could have spread out on the mat and taken a nap. In fact I heard from several artists who did just that! It was the 5th day of painting after all!

I will always remember the sights, sounds and smells of this day. We were set up next to a women who had 5 young boys with her. Brave woman! They were all well behaved except for poor Ollie. In my mind, the sounds of the sea and wind will always be accompanied by the cries of "Ollie!!"

Love the Monkey Mat! It came in handy several times this week!

'Seaside Drama'          7x5        pastel       $95

Painting Notes:  Today's painting at the top of this post is 9x12 and dark blue Colourfix paper. It was inspired by a photo I took of the dark skies and exciting light from the afternoon coming storms. Even though the beach was full of people on holiday I decided to add just one solitary figure.