Direct Watercolor #11

 Here is my 30 x 30 Direct Watercolor for #11. Last weekend my friend, Suzala and I went to Glen Cove to paint the Saddle Rock Grist Mill. I had been there once before a long time ago and they improved the park around the mill quite a bit. It now has a playground, basketball hoops, and a large community pool. Now there is a path that goes a little way on the left and you can see that side of the mill clearly. The last time there were a lot of Canadian geese messing up the park, but there weren't any around this time. I like the improvements. Hopefully they will do some work to restore the building a bit more. It looks a bit more worn than it did back in 2012 when I was there. I sketched it then too. It was open at one time but seems to be closed to the public now.

I finished my painting before Suzala was done so I did another quick sketch of the grist mill. I like the energy of this one.

On Saturday I went exploring and found the Saddle Rock Grist Mill which is located in Great Neck. It is a historical landmark and is possibly the oldest tidal gristmill in the country. It was built in 1792 from mill equipment brought over from England as well as local materials. It was in continuous operation until 1940. The mill sits alongside Udall's Pond where trading vessels would land from the Atlantic Ocean, arriving from either the East River, or Long Island Sound, and return loaded with corn flour from the mill.

 

Of course I timed my visit wrong and it was closed for the season. I was able to get a view of it from the park next to it, where my only company was about 100 Canadian geese. I will have to go back and sketch it again. It is in a really nice spot.