A trio of sketches from Lytham

Three quick sketches that I managed to find time to do during a brief visit to Lytham St. Annes. I’m familiar with the view across the bay from Lytham looking towards the Southport, Liverpool and North Wales however the light on this particular morning was overcast, flat and gloomy. It was also pretty cold too so it did feel a little like things were conspiring against me! The sketches are pictured in the order that I painted them and, despite at the time feeling dissatisfied with my first effort and convinced that I’d better it with subsequent sketches – by the time I’d added some pencil definition along the shoreline once it had dried off a little, it ended up being the one I liked most.

I appreciate that these are lacking in so many things (just minor things like any decent composition or particular focal points etc)  but, as an exercise this was much more about me just making the time to get outdoors and to paint something rather than whatever the results might be. After packing away my sketchbook, the sun did eventually manage to break through a little and I was able to take a couple of photographs of the windmill on the lawns of Lytham seafront. It looked quite fetching with the light on it with the moody clouds still in the background so I’m thinking that I may try to make it a little painting project.