Created on the spot during Peploe’s working trip to the island of Barra in 1903, this diminutive painting encapsulates Peploe’s desire to depict the essence of a scene before him. In this case he has achieved the seemingly impossible recording of waves falling against rocks amidst a choppy sea. Working on a smal scale and applying un-mixed paint with little forethought, the energy of the artist’s technique and that of the water in front of him come together to create a vigorous image which verges on the abstract.