East Looe River and view towards Looe Bridge

I recently spent some time painting the beautiful view of the East Looe River looking towards the old bridge. It is such a lovely spot in Cornwall with all the boats tucked into the harbor. In this painting, I wanted to capture the calm feeling of the water and the way the houses sit on the hill in the background. The tide was low, which gave me a great chance to paint some of the green algae on the riverbed.

To get the colors right, I used a lot of Cerulean Blue and Cobalt Blue for the sky and the reflections in the water. The bright greens you see near the boats were made using some Viridian Green mixed with a bit of Yellow Ochre. I find that these simple mixes help the scene look natural and fresh. For the dark shadows under the bridge and the boats, I used a touch of Neutral Tint to give the painting some depth and contrast.

I enjoyed painting the masts of the boats against the dark trees on the hill. It is a bit of a challenge to keep the lines steady, but it really adds to the busy feel of a working harbor. The white highlights on the boat tops were added at the very end to make them pop out against the blue water. I think the bridge in the distance helps pull your eye through the painting and makes the whole scene feel complete.