Eternal Relaxation, the finished painting.

I start out painting the sky after I have sketched in the basic values of the piece with a mixture of alizarin crimson and ultramarine blue.

The sky sets the value for the entire painting. I paint all of my pieces in the same basic order after the initial sketching. First the sky, then the distant background.

I'm working forward with the water. The bouganvillaes were blocked in while the sky was still wet, giving softness to the edges.

Working some of the details on the building and flowers.

Blocking in the rocks. I mix several different browns and grays before I begin, this allows for variations in the rocks, making them interesting. I use a very large brush, making bold strokes.

The ocean is pretty much finished. Notice the water is a duller blue in the distance, becoming brighter and more intense in the foreground.

These boats from Sistre Levante, Italy absolutely captivated me. The striped covers are a challenge to paint.

Detail of the finished boats and fishing nets.

Adding the final touches to the flowers in the foreground. You can see I have a shadow across the front of the painting. This gives a "Threshold" effect, the light behind the shadow draws the viewer's eye into the painting.