Tiny Boats are Sailing this Way
My Tiny Boats are part of an ongoing project that I’ve been working on for almost a year now! (You might remember this Instagram post from last December.)
This project was born out of a problem I wanted to solve — how to not waste leftover paint on my palette at the end of a studio session.
One day after working on a marsh painting, I grabbed a piece of loose canvas and started making marks using just the leftover paint on my palette that hadn’t dried, yet. I didn’t overthink it, I just kept it loose and playful.
The weeks went by, and I kept adding paint to that canvas — using brushes, seashells and a palette knife. My only rule was that I couldn’t get out any new paint. I had to use whatever was left on my palette, which made for some beautifully unexpected color combinations.
Then I decided to add a few details with pencil, just for fun! That’s when the boats started showing up.
Boats are a symbol that have been part of my visual vocabulary since childhood. I remember drawing one with a little prayer for my dad that he hung in his office. So when they show up in my paintings now, it’s like a welcome little surprise!
Eventually, that first painting — created using only extra paint and pencil — felt complete. So I started another one, and another one after that. Pretty soon I had a little collection of colorful and abstract coastal paintings with tiny boats!
They’re like a visual timeline of my year — a story told through color!
The loose canvases have been mounted to 20 x 16 x 1-5/8 in. birchwood panels with the edges painted white, so they’re ready to hang!
Plus, I saved one canvas to cut into smaller pieces, creating minis (aka the cutest stocking stuffers)! They’re matted and framed, measuring 4-1/4 x 3-7/8 x 1-3/8 in.
