Waiting for the boat
Posted: August 4, 2021 Filed under: Uncategorized 17 CommentsI’ve seen the massive limestone iconic Percé Rock in photos all my life, as have all Canadians, but it’s so much more spectacular in person. If you are approaching from the north, you come up over the top of a hill and suddenly there it is in all its glory, backlit in the morning sun. When I sketched it later in the day, I decided to include the people on the pier who were waiting for the boat that goes to Bonaventure Island. It might not seem like the monolith it is without something to give it scale.
The funny thing about painting a landscape feature as iconic as Percé Rock is that you have to get the shape right. Mine may not be as wide as it should be, but close enough. If it was any wider it would have gone off the page at the left. My favourite part of the scene is the tiny bit of sky and tiny slice of water that you can see through the hole in the rock.
I painted this on location, on a brand new pad of Hahnemuehle The Collection Watercolour paper. It’s the first time I try this paper and my first impression is very positive. It takes the colour really well, it’s fantastic for dry brush effects like I used in the water, and apparently it lifts very well although I haven’t tried that yet.

So good! And just for a moment I thought I recognised someone in the boat queue 😉
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Thanks Tony!! Tomorrow that will be me waiting in that queue! Next time you make it to Canada you have to visit this area. Truly spectacular!!
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That’s lovely Shari. And such an iconic spot.
Happy vacation – you deserve it :).
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Thanks so much Mary. It was such an amazing place and we appreciated every minute of it. And we were so lucky with the good weather.
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Hi Shari
Happy vacation!
This is a really nice view.
I love how your water ‘sparkles’; how all of your people show scale (that rock’s size is awesome!); the contrasting strip of greenery at the top and the beautiful ocean view through the cave.
What a feast!
Many thanks😎
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Chris, it was a feast in so many ways. We feasted on the views and we feasted on some very good seafood too. All around great week.
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Wow! I would love to see that rock in person! Good for you.. thanks for sharing. The wc paper sounds interesting.
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Susie, it’s really nice paper. I will definitely be playing with it again both in studio and outdoors.
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Love your work. Have been using that paper for awhile and really like it.
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That’s great to hear about the paper. I haven’t seen it here yet so it was nice to receive this sample.
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Really nice painting of the rocks!!
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Thanks so much Shawn!
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Good Morning dear friend Shari,
Very beautiful and a complicated sketch to draw.
I love the people gathered, how you managed to draw such a huge crowd,
Great is your skill.
All the best and good luck.
Blessings
Uma
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Hi Sheri – quick question, is this cold press or rough surface paper? I really love the sparkle from you dry brush.
Thanks, Phil.
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Hi Phil. This is a cold press surface.
Shari
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Wow is beautiful I love it ❤️❤️💯
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Thank you!
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