Monochrome

Jennifer Day,
oil on panel,
36 x 48 inches

Monochrome studies allow you to concentrate on tone and detail without the distraction of colour. An old master oil paining technique is to start with a monochrome underpainting and then (after waiting for it to dry) add glazes of colour. It requires patience, but gives the painting depth, purity and richness. A monochrome underpainting need not be black and white or grey scale. Warm, earth tones were the most used for underpainting by the old masters, although cooler hues, would be better for watery subjects. It's advisable to use a pigment that dries relatively quickly.
The artist has chosen to use panel for the support. A smooth support can be more suitable than canvas for the subtle detail in the clouds and waves (unless working on a very large scale).

Norman Ackroyd - British

Great Blasket, Etching, 20 x 19 cm


Aran

Study of Sun and Rain, Skellig Rock

These are etchings, not oil paintings, but they are a good example of the importance of abstract, poetic qualities, and mood, in seascape painting, rather than mere literal representation. The Judd Waugh oil painting on the side bar to the right, also shows that a limited palette, almost monochrome, can make a very strong image.

Northern Seas

John Constable (English, 1776-1837), The Sea near Brighton, 1826,
oil on paper laid on card, 17.5 x 23.8 cm, Tate Gallery, London


Ric Horner, The North Sea


Swollen Sea, 90 x 90 cm, Mark Johnston, English


Sea and Shore, Donald Teskey



Donald Teskey, Galley Head From Castle Cove, 183 x 214 cm, 2005

Donald Teskey, From Galley Head, 183 x 214 cm

Expressionistic or semi-abstract works of the grey seas around Britain.