Windermere Clouds – finished!

I had so enjoyed painting this scene that it seemed imperative to finish it.  There was not a lot to do  – half an hour might do it.  In the event it took three half hours but I am pleased enough to sign it.

I love the way the sunlight brightens the fells.  It looks like the rain has just passed over towards the right of the picture and the little yachts are enjoying light breezes.  Autumn is fast approaching  – the colour in the trees tells you that.

It works as a composition too.  The clouds seem to come together in the middle, then the eye follows the distant hills down to the fells which dip into a tiny valley.  Then the break in the trees takes you to the water.  The sails are just enough to break the horizontal  line of the shore.  I just noticed that the whole picture divides into approximate thirds! Boats and dip in the trees on the vertical ones and shoreline and the bottom of the clouds on the horizontal ones.  Serendipity rules!