Painting outside has always been important to me. Since the canvases are too large to take on site, I started doing outdoor studies on paper. Painting on location is completely different from working in the studio – time is usually limited, conditions of weather, light, wind, tides, etc. are constantly changing, and the site itself may be hot, cold, windy, rainy, buggy, difficult to get to, or offer only a tiny place to perch while working. Because of these constraints, my first paper studies were often little more than notes on color, space and composition. Over time they became something else, a kind of discipline done for its own sake.

Nearly all were completed on location in a single session, usually one to two hours. Some are much more finished than others. Some served as studies for larger paintings and with others, I felt I got what I was after and didn't need to make a larger piece.