Waiting for the ship. Lake Rotoiti.

It must be one of the enduring mysteries of life. Why, when confronted with jetty or pier do we feel compelled to walk to the end and presumably contemplate eternity. Or at least, eternal questions such as, "When will my ship come in?", and "What time is tea?"

When I arrived at Lake Rotoiti today in search of snow, there was no snow left on Mount Robert, but on the West Arm Jetty was this solitary watcher. I knew that the search for my subject of the day was over.

I don't know what he was waiting for. There are no scheduled sailings on the lake. Nor were there any sea birds. The wind was gusting quite nicely but there were no yachts to watch, bending to the breeze.

I was compelled to assume that his watch was metaphysical. Perhaps he was waiting for his mythical ship of fortune to arrive.

Whatever. By the time I had painted him in he had gone on his way, so I did not have the opportunity to question him. The mystery makes for a great painting though. "Waiting for the Ship"



15119. "Waiting for the Ship" oil on panel. 8x10 in. $150

Any plein air painting from this blog may be purchased by emailing me at

rosswhitlock@inspire.net.nz

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