Scenes from park and river, windy day

I rode out to René-Lévesque Park, its the artificial peninsula near Lachine that creates the marina. In this scene you see one of the art-deco outdoor bathrooms, a curving bike path, and a few benches that look out onto st Lawrence river west direction. Three groups of flowers were seen, including orange-yellow, yellow, and violet. I used a hue-saturation-value (HSV) fade technique on the path. That is where a pale blue-grey fades to light cream colour. 

Curving bike path outdoor bathroom, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, July 2026

Also in the park, this view is looking east towards Mercier bridge, with an old poplar tree in the foreground. Today everything had a yellow tinge from forest fires, and the river was greyish-blue. When the illumination is yellowish, blue surfaces become greyish. 

Mercier bridge poplar tree, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, July 2026

Some peony shrubs grow on the point, complete with olive foliage and magenta flowers. Some red winged black birds were flapping around, chirping loudly. The whole park is populated with these birds, and other bird species including seagulls. 

Sparkling water red winged black birds, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, July 2026

 

Here is the first painting I did on the trip, its an effort to capture the choppy, grey-blue water with earthy undertones. I mixed green umber (PBr7) with indo blue (PB60) and diluted with water, then used side-drag brushwork to create sparkle, then over-painted brown (PR102) yellow (PY43), and blue (PB15) ripples. 

Windy day river ripples, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, July 2026

 

Last from the location, a quick and breezy painting of the park, with Lachine visible on the other side, across the marina area. I used the 'Cloud over Trenholme' style to render the clouds, that painting which was done in 2024 remains one of my all time favorites. 

Breezy day Lachine view, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, July 2026