Large Contemporary Seascape Painting By Robert Joyner

Details About This Artwork

Acrylic on paper, measures 22" x 22" and is available unframed

Inspiration And Technique Used For This Expressive Painting

I've always had a fascination with old fishing boats. There's a certain mystique that they have and I'm always curious what Captains have sailed the ship and how many storms they've encountered. If they could only talk!

When I was a small child I had a fear of the ocean and was never comfortable when we would take boat rides at my Grandmother's house. She lived is a house that had a small canal in the backyard, so I would find myself in this peculiar position of having to go when I really didn't want to. In the early 90's I came across a guy that happened to be a fisherman - more specifically a scallop fisherman. He had just returned from a trip and was bragging about the wad of cash he just earned. This piqued my interest since I was looking for a job that payed well enough for me to take time off in the winter to focus on my passion which was ballroom dancing. So, I headed down to the docks a few days later and after several rejections finally got the opportunity to fish aboard the 'Lady Deborah'. I took the job knowing that I still feared the open sea, but figured I would eventually overcome this with a big payday only a few weeks away. The money was the carrot that got me through this and it wasn't long until I had a beard and bandanna and could call myself a fisherman. I think this connection will always be there and to paint fishing boats brings back fond memories of being on the Atlantic aboard the 'Lady Deborah'.

My goal with this one was to create an atmosphere that is typical of being at the docks. It's a very grungy environment with rust, steel and weathered boats. Working with some muted colors and incorporating some grays would capture the feeling I get when I'm at the Newport News Marine Terminal in Virginia. I built the painting up over several layers starting with the boats and working into the water and skyline. With each new layer I added more and more details until I thought the piece was unified and had the look I was after. Returning to the piece the following day revealed a rather dull look which can be synonymous with acrylics. I decided to added a punch of color by using some light yellow to accent the middle boat, and some thinned out transparent ultramarine blue which was added to the water in the foreground. Once these changes were made I decided it was a keeper and ready for it's final voyage to a new home port.

Close-Up Images So You Can Appreciate The Loose And Abstract Brushwork

How To Purchase This Painting

This piece is now available at my Etsy shop. Be sure to stop in browse the great deals on original art.

That's all folks.