Terrill Welch Gallery Pod from Terrill Welch

Artist notes: Midday in the slightly cooler shade of rustling poplar leaves, I stand steady at the easel with my eyes on considering shapes, colour and texture inspired by a few bits of seafloor. The task is to render an abstract plein air painting in oils over an orange acrylic ground on canvas using the information from my whole body and mind. I walk out into the bright warmth of pungent sea-scented sunlight and gather three references but choose to work from memory instead. There is a welcomed intermittent ever-so soft breeze. I paint close to the high tide line under the shade of the trees. The reefs are dry from baking for hours under a low tide and summer sun. I step back from the easel and go gather two more references. But again, I work from memory as I move to noticing just colour and texture on the surface of the painting. Finally, I focus only on texture. A wind comes up and the sea thrashes against the outside of the reef. My mark making scratches the surface and impasto paint seems to float like broken shells on a wishful incoming tide. I am remembering to forget.