Oil wash on canvas panel, circa 1967.

From the cover of a paperback which I have long ago forgotten.

The loneliness of this ship in the doldrums was intriguing to me as a subject, along with the limited monochrome palette and skyscape background. I was just starting to experiment with oil as a medium and with larger format works. I wanted to try copying this subject to see how it would work out.

The use of a wash, that is oil paint thinned to a mostly transparent consistency, seemed natural for this monochromatic subject, since there was little need to paint over previously painted sections. Only the sun and it's reflections in the water were done with unthinned, opaque paint.