Construction Site #2: Courcelle street

 

The corner of Courcelle and st Jacques street down in st Henri has been undergoing a seismic construction for the past few months. Mostly blocked off there are still some passages to get through by foot, car, or bike as the signs would seem to indicate. I changed the walking sign to a jumping character, like you have to jump over things to get across! Today I adjusted the orange mixture to contain more PO62 pigment so it scans more accurately. For some reason the scanner and computer monitor make fluorescent orange appear to be too red. Book idea: The science of painting construction signs by PJ Darlington. 

Construction signs Courcelle, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, August 2025
 

At the same site, which was wonderfully silent and free of traffic today, I found a good view of the giant pit they are digging. I changed the colours to be molten red, orange and yellow giving the impression that some deep layer of the earth's crust has been breached. There is a mysterious box in the middle of the wreckage, and the signs are a ? of confusion. 

Pit of construction, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, August 2025
 

Next to the giant scooper machine, a narrow path allowed people to cross over st Jacques and into st Henri. A person hit the fence and fell off their bike here but they were going slow and seemed to be okay. The more of these construction site paintings I do, the more exaggerated they become. In this case, the vehicle occupies about 75% of the scene. 

Walking path, watercolour 6 x 7.5" cold press, August 2025