September 17, 2026

In one of the first workshops I took in the early 2000s, teaching artist William Scott Jennings kept repeating the same advice: use a big brush…and use the same brush for the entire painting. Other instructors have put it this way—pick the brush you think is the right size, then go one size bigger. I’ve generally followed that rule ever since. Even on small panels, my main brush is about an inch wide. It lays down bold, confident strokes, yet the edge gives you fine lines and the tip of the side handles the smaller details.

Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters were painting at Otter Point in Pacific Grove, so I decided to join them. The forecast looked unpromising, mostly cloudy with little hope of clearing until late afternoon, and I nearly stayed home. Glad I didn’t. The overcast held all morning, soft light wrapping the rocks and water in a quiet gray-green calm.

Here are a few pictures of the group out painting.

I settled on a small rock study just below where I set up my easel. Other than the initial sketch, I used the same #10 Ruby Silver Satin Bright brush (about an inch wide) for the entire painting . There’s something satisfying about committing to one tool and letting it do all the work. Occasionally, I will use a similarly wide filbert to get softer edges, especially for clouds and backgrounds. You don’t have to carry a lot of extra brushes juggling them around, switching colors, etc. When I needed to dramatically switch to a different color or value, I would clean the brush with a little turpentine, or wipe with a paper towel.

Here is a picture of the painting nearing completion with the brush right in front of it.

Well, I get lucky sometimes. The painting came together well and will probably need little, if any, touch-up.