This painting began with a quiet pause beside a shallow tidal pool. The water was barely moving, just a slow shimmer over sand and stone. Mussel shells clustered near the edge—some cracked open, others still whole and half-submerged.

Oil paint gave me room to linger. I built up the surface slowly, layering thin glazes for the wet shine of the water, then thicker brushwork for the shells themselves. Those deep blues, purples, and subtle rust tones are surprisingly complex when the light hits them underwater.

What I love about tidal pools is how they hold a whole world in miniature. Still, but not static. Alive. You catch a reflection, a shift in the sand, the glint of something overlooked.

This one felt like painting a moment that was waiting to be noticed.