Seahorse Habitat

In Grand Marais, I decided to paint the seahorse clinging to the aquatic plant.  As with my 2014 painting GM Painting collection, I decided to experiment with color to create more interest, dimension, and contrast. 

This color blue is consistent with the aquatic series from 2014.  This is the color toward the surface, where the sunlight is able to filter through the water; deeper is darker.  Acrylic on canvas.

 

This vertical slice provides insights into the changing tone of the water as you descend toward the bottom of the picture.  I also decided to make the plants more teal than limey-green.  Notice that as the plants mover further back in the visual plain, they are darker and less defined.  Acrylic on canvas.  Click to enlarge image.

I thought about creating an ocean floor in this painting similar to the one in the "blue fish" painting.  Since one of the challenges in "blue fish" is the competition of visual attention (between the fish and the boulders,) I decided to make this painting about vertical images.  (It does help that this is also a vertical canvas that is 12" X 24".)

The overlapping plants in the bottom left-hand corner of the painting, are intended to create depth in the water and distance in the landscape.  I lover the curvature of the plant blades in the foreground, but still think this is a very two-dimensional space.  I am resisting the urge to add boulders for landscape (OK, seascape, distance.)