Saturday, January 4, 2025

Post 364: Sunrise, Sunset, A Day Not to Forget

Sunrise, Sunset, A Day Not to Forget 

I recently had a request for a small sunrise/sunset painting while in North Carolina. Thus, this new series of sunrises and sunsets over the ocean, tending to be Harkers Island, NC oriented on the East Coast, was born.

Everyone loves a spectacular and colorful sunup and sundown, right? I don't think I've ever met anyone that doesn't love standing on a beach (toes in sand) at the start or at the end of a day and watching a glorious God-given canvas of the sun rising, or the sunsetting, offering up a plethora of colors across the sky... There are variances of which tubes of color to place and mix on the palette.

Sunrises and Sunsets

Sunrise. Every single day is a different heavenly color show, lo - every second of every morning the color changes as the sun comes up from the horizon. (Let there be light.) In a painting, the colors on the palette are yellows, orange, pink, purple and blue. The tendency is a pastel sky as the day opens with a brightness, a cleanness of color. True, depending on the weather, the cloud coverage, more color variances can be added as well. A variation of the moon may still be up but usually fades away as the day progresses.

Sunsets. At the end of the day as the sun lowers in the sky, the sunset pallet may be more vivid, a warmness and darker saturated intense colors including pinks/magenta, reds and oranges, and purple/deeper blues. A silvery moon might appear as well as a few bright stars. The glow of color on the clouds might be a consideration or cloud coverage may block it out.

Read more about Do Sunrises Look Different Than Sunsets

A Day Not to Forget. I know and remember the first time I met the ocean and every time I get to stand and watch a sunrise or sunset most especially while viewing from the coast, I get a feeling of the awesomeness of the Creator and the world He placed us in. Seeing the ocean on a day that I can catch a view of a sunrise and sunset, it reminds me of this beautiful color palette He gifts us with. A painting of our daily reminder is a day to not forget.


So far I have 3 in the series with the hopes of finishing 1 or 2 more (they'll be added to the bottom of this post if I do). I may tweak even these just a tad if a bird or two happen to do a fly by, as they always do.
Update Monday, January 6, 2025 - 2 new sunrise series in progress

Sunrise, Sunset Series 1 at Harkers Island, NC

SKU: 01A25ACG
Medium: Acrylic, Acrylic Pens
Size: 6x6x1.5 Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas
Edition Year: 2025
Framed?: No
Sunrise, Sunset 1 at Harkers Island, NC, acrylic 6x6 on canvas

Sunrise, Sunset 1 at Harkers Island, NC, acrylic 6x6 on canvas

Sunrise, Sunset 1 at Harkers Island, NC, acrylic 6x6 on canvas

About this Painting - 1

Why Harkers Island? I love visiting there! I have friends that have retired there and I love my time visiting with them and I do like the "island life". Another rather interesting thing to me is the way Harkers Island sits under the age-old phrase, "the sun rises in the east and sets in the west". Depending on where you are standing, the sun can rise over the water and set over the water - making some fascinating color shows at different angles according to the time of year.

As a point of reference, this painting is standing on Harkers Island with the sun setting toward Beaufort, NC off in the distance. 

I typically paint the edges of a canvas continuing the front view around the edges so that when a painting is hung, it makes sense from any angle.

Sunrise, Sunset Series 2 at Harkers Island, NC

SKU: 01B25ACG
Medium: Acrylic and Acrylic Pens
Size: 6x6x1.5 Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas
Edition Year: 2025
Framed?: No
Sunrise, Sunset 2 at Harkers Island, NC, acrylic 6x6 on canvas

Sunrise, Sunset 2 at Harkers Island, NC, acrylic 6x6 on canvas

About this Painting - 2

This painting in the series is a sunrise while standing at a location on Harkers Island with the sun rising to the east and the Cape Lookout Lighthouse in view.

Sunrise, Sunset Series 3 at Harkers Island, NC

SKU: 01C25ACG
Medium: Acrylic, Acrylic Pens
Size: 6x6x1.5 Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas
Edition Year: 2025
Framed?: No
Sunrise, Sunset 3 at Harkers Island, NC, acrylic 6x6 on canvas

Sunrise, Sunset 3 at Harkers Island, NC, acrylic 6x6 on canvas

About this Painting - 3

Again, this painting is a westerly view of a sunset.

Sunrise, Sunset Series 4 at Harkers Island, NC?

I may paint a few more and will update this post if I do! With snow coming, I just may so I can be in a beachy sorta mindset!

Update Monday, January 6, 2025: A snow day here in Woodbridge, VA. So painting East Coast sunrises and sunsets sounds like a GREAT idea to me! Dreading the thought of going out and shoveling all that snow. 

SKU: 01D25ACG
Medium: Acrylic, Acrylic Pens
Size: 6x6x1.5 Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas
Edition Year: 2025
Framed?: No

Pending Photo...

Sunrise, Sunset Series 5 at Harkers Island, NC?

SKU: 01E25ACG
Medium: Acrylic, Acrylic Pens
Size: 6x6x1.5 Gallery Wrapped Stretched Canvas
Edition Year: 2025
Framed?: No

Pending Photo...

Absolutely, each day, each palette of colors for that day, is NOT set in stone. The hope and promise of a new day and changes that can and do take place in a day lived are our contact companions. A sunrise or sunset painting can help us remember that each day.

Which one is your favorite?

__________________________________________________________________________________

*Thank you for visiting and remember to Share, to Follow, and please Comment! *I LOVE reading your comments on my posts! Just remember that the blog comments are monitored so they may not appear right away.

Let me know if you like my paintings and if you need a handmade, original painting for yourself or as a gift for a friend or family member. If you want to commission me to do a painting for you, please contact me through this blog, on Facebook, My Website at https://DonnaLiguriaArt.com, or go to Donna Liguria Art on Etsy at https://donnaliguriaart.etsy.com to shop my available Artwork.