The white cliffs of Black Rock in spring

“The white cliffs of Black Rock in spring” by Geof Pearce.

Turning off Beach Road just north of Arkaringa Crescent in Black Rock you drive down Cerberus Way to the sea…an area where, to the north there is a seafood restaurant and a surf lifesaving club, car park and pier, whilst to the south of the car park is Black Rock Point where there are the unique ‘white cliffs’ of this coastal area of Port Phillip Bay.

The parchment-coloured cliffs are steep to almost vertical and have been sculptured by the ‘run-off’ of years of rainfall…whilst the shadows at this time of the day accentuates the deeply eroded sandstone wall.

Along the top of these ‘beautiful’ cliffs is an area of coastal scrub and tea-tree vegetation including some ‘drooping sheoak’ and along the beach front there are the common coastal grasses, sedges, saltbush and rushes.

This unique landscape – absolutely recognisable – one that we may even be emotionally connected to, the delightfully still light and reflections…toward the end of a lovely Bayside spring day…provided an opportunity to translate the landscape onto canvas through the poetic language of my paints.

The colours may seem a little subdued but that is a reflection of the time of day and yet the late glowing afternoon light can be seen on the water, the cliffs and especially the saltbush and other vegetation throughout the painting.

Medium: – Acrylic on 10oz Australian Acrylic Primed Linen
Size: Landscape: – 122cm (48”) x 76cm (30”)
Completion Date: – March 2020