Westering sun or sunsets are an attractive subject for plein aire artists. They also are interesting to many art collectors because of the varied possibilities of what a sunset may look like. 

My painting, "Westering Sun" was done on location on Hawaii (the big island) looking due west. Although the sun became different in hue and color as the sunset progressed, it was is initial impression of the yellow sun shadowing the multiple palm trees that piqued my interest. When encountering such a fugitive, ever changing facet of nature I rely on my camera to capture the initial moment(s) as I set to work. That way I can refer to what grabbed my attention in the first place. Sunsets, golden hour times and early morning/dawn plein aire paintings require planning well so you are set up before the event gets under way.

On this day and time I planned to use only three colors plus a second, lighter blue to do the painting. For my "red" I chose Permanent Alizarin Crimson. The blue is Ultramarine, and the yellow is Cadmium Yellow Light. The lighter blue is Cerulean for the sky. All other colors were based on mixing to get the hues and neutrals needed. Papers I like are Arches (for this painting) and Fabriano. They perform the best for me. When plein aire painting, I like watercolor blocks and I generally keep sizes: 9 x 12, 12 x 18, 15 x 22, and 18 x 24 on hand. I choose the size to use, based on my pre-planning with some regard for the emotion and muse of the moment.

As for execution, well the fleeting moment was laid out quickly and the painting done very rapidly, with the final detailing done from memory in the fading light of day.