The artist used to keep a rowing dory moored off the beach in Lanikai, the area shown on the right panel, the closer ridge. You can see the top of Mt. Olomana left of center on the same panel and the Koolau ridgeline from Makapuu to beyond Kaneohe in the background of both panels. It is fascinating to watch the fair weather cumulus clouds blow in from the sea and bunch up on the mountains, and there is no place better to enjoy this phenomenon than from this spot. Everyday for a couple of weeks, the artist would load his paints, this painting and other gear onto his dory and commute to work, to the Mokulua, twin (lua) Islands (moku). There is no substitute for the direct experience of life drawing/ painting, and when you’re young and fit, you can row a 16’ boat a mile offshore, and back everyday. The tricky part was getting the rowboat through the waves that wrap around the island; you would basically have to time it just right, in between sets. 30 years ago, you could have had an empty Mokulua Beach to yourself, you just had to avoid the weekends
“Mokulua Diptych” by Bill Braden
The artist used to keep a rowing dory moored off the beach in Lanikai, the area shown on the right panel, the closer ridge. You can see the top of Mt. Olomana left of center on the same panel and the Koolau ridgeline from Makapuu to beyond Kaneohe in the background of both panels. It is fascinating to watch the fair weather cumulus clouds blow in from the sea and bunch up on the mountains, and there is no place better to enjoy this phenomenon than from this spot. Everyday for a couple of weeks, the artist would load his paints, this painting and other gear onto his dory and commute to work, to the Mokulua, twin (lua) Islands (moku). There is no substitute for the direct experience of life drawing/ painting, and when you’re young and fit, you can row a 16’ boat a mile offshore, and back everyday. The tricky part was getting the rowboat through the waves that wrap around the island; you would basically have to time it just right, in between sets. 30 years ago, you could have had an empty Mokulua Beach to yourself, you just had to avoid the weekends