Troels Kirk

Skane, Sweden, Seagull Stone, acrylic, 90 x 90 cm (35 x 35")

My Inspiration

The larger part of my paintings reflect my lifelong passion for nature in all its forms, from grand views to intimate scenes, most often when all is quiet and peaceful. Early morning is my favorite time of the day. On an especially mild spring morning at the local coast I encountered this big gull, seemingly enjoying the first rays of sunshine just as much as I did... There was no wind, no movement and no noise to break our peace, and I did not want to spoil the moment by grabbing my camera or sketch pad. So I just carefully observed and memorized the scene, the light and reflections, to be able to recreate it in my studio.

My Design Strategy

Back in my studio I made a couple of initial sketches from memory, trying to recreate the mood of my lovely morning. Then followed a series of thumbnail sketches to test various compositions. I rearranged the three stones to get a triangular composition, and in order to balance the dark, contrasting stones with the light, negative space of the calm sea, I decided on a square format to give the gull plenty of headroom. For the final working drawing, I used some suitable reference photographs of a similar seagull from my photo archive.

My Working Process

The stretched linen canvas received a few light Naples yellow washes all over, followed by very soft ultramarine blue strokes blended wet-on-wet to simulate the slight movement of the sea. When dry, I built up the three stones with impasto acrylics and a large brush. The warmly lit stone faces were balanced by cooler shadow colors. A broad, flat brush was used for the the stone reflections, before adding the seaweed details. Finally I painted the big gull. When painting both the calm sea and the highlights on the stones, I took care not to use too bright mixes, leaving tonal value room for the extreme highlight on the seagull, which was painted with titanium white mixed with a tiny amount of lemon cadmium.

Contact Details

» Email: info@troelskirk.com » Website: www.troelskirk.com