Sea squall

 


Sitting on the beach listening to the muffled sound of waves gently lapping the seashore... what could go wrong? Suddenly, a squall whips up out of nowhere, swaying the palm tree, which yields to this force of nature - the wind sock tells of gale force winds of 15 knots or more. An intrepid seagull seizes the moment and flies headlong into the strong wind ... as the lone eyewitness takes it all in.

So what exactly does the windsock tell us?



  • The shape of the windsock is designed to catch the wind, and as it fills, the sock will point directly away from the wind source. In the artwork, the wind is blowing from right to left
  • The greater the wind speed, the more the sock will fill out and stretch. This amount of inflation gives a visual cue not only of the direction of the wind but also of the wind’s strength.
  • For example, for winds of a strong or severe gale (15+ knots or 30+ mph or 48+ km/h) force: The windsock will extend fully, even nearly horizontal, indicating very strong winds.


Comments

Anonymous said…
Ah beautiful - in memory lane you take me back to my navy days in Colaba and Dabolim.
April 1, 2025 at 8:42 AM
Kieran said…
Alas, Goan beaches are being vandalised by entitled tourist who leave a mess after they've had a good time. When will we ever learn civic sense??
April 1, 2025 at 8:43 AM
Anonymous said…
Good morning from San Diego. Lovely artwork. Do you write the blog first and then draw? Or reverse?
April 1, 2025 at 8:43 AM
Kieran said…
I start by looking at my inspiration set of 150+ ideas for something that interests me. I sorta focus on the art angle so I sketch and paint first, adding one or more elements of motion, levity or depth. I mull over the artwork a few hours later to see if it is missing something and if it tells a story. Then I watermark the artwork and blog about it
April 1, 2025 at 8:44 AM
Anonymous said…
You must read on the Beaufort scale of wind intensity also.
April 1, 2025 at 8:46 AM
Kieran said…
Thanks, I learn something new every day. The Beaufort scale is a standardized system for measuring wind speed developed in 1805 by Sir Francis Beaufort. The scale ranges from 0 to 12 (and sometimes extends to 17 for extreme conditions like hurricanes), with each level corresponding to specific wind speeds and visible effects.
0 (Calm) – Wind speed less than 1 knot (0–1 mph); smoke rises vertically.
1 (Light Air) – 1-3 knots (1-3 mph); smoke drifts but wind is not felt.
2 (Light Breeze) – 4-6 knots (4-7 mph); wind felt on face, rustles leaves.
3 (Gentle Breeze) – 7-10 knots (8-12 mph); leaves and small twigs in motion.
4 (Moderate Breeze) – 11-16 knots (13-18 mph); small branches move, raises dust.
5 (Fresh Breeze) – 17-21 knots (19-24 mph); small trees sway, waves form on water.
6 (Strong Breeze) – 22-27 knots (25-31 mph); large branches sway, umbrellas hard to use.
7 (Near Gale) – 28-33 knots (32-38 mph); whole trees sway, walking against wind is difficult.
8 (Gale) – 34-40 knots (39-46 mph); twigs break, difficult to walk.
9 (Strong Gale) – 41-47 knots (47-54 mph); minor structural damage, shingles blown off roofs.
10 (Storm) – 48-55 knots (55-63 mph); trees uprooted, structural damage.
11 (Violent Storm) – 56-63 knots (64-72 mph); widespread damage, rare inland.
12 (Hurricane) – 64+ knots (73+ mph); extreme destruction, large waves at sea.
This scale is still widely used in meteorology, marine navigation, and weather forecasting
April 1, 2025 at 8:48 AM
Anonymous said…
Love this account and also how you captured all the movement in the tree, sky/clouds and sea - beautiful! Feel like I was there (I wish, doing my taxes at the moment, ugh! 🤣). Xxo
April 1, 2025 at 12:07 PM
Anonymous said…
I am surprised to see that despite modern technology the airports still use windsocks...in Goa the best way to send a baby to sleep was to take it to the seaside where the shushing of the sea breeze in the coconut palms was lullaby enough...those WERE the days...
The tree looks like a flamenco dancer when she throws her head back...the kind of honest pride in her art form which runs in her blood...
April 2, 2025 at 11:16 AM
Kieran said…
Funny you should mention it - like you were reading my mind - I was contemplating painting a flamenco dancer …
April 2, 2025 at 11:16 AM
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