This one was painted sitting in a friend's garden overlooking East Wittering beach, in the last light of a summer evening. The sky that night was spectacular, full of colours I don't often get the chance to mix, and I worked quickly to catch them before they shifted.

On-location sketches like this are an essential part of my practice. The colours and marks you learn to make in front of a view, working fast and without overthinking, bring a freedom that's harder to access back in the studio. That spontaneity is what gives a piece like this the strength to stand on its own, not just as a study but as a finished work in its own right.

Framed original sketch on khadi paper. Painting mediums used: Liquitex and Daler-Rowney.