Turbulent Paradise

The power of a place like McWay falls is in it's class with the elements, but it's gentle design, and it's mythic looking waterfall, that has surely inspired a thousand artists.  The object here was to use more powerful brushstrokes, which can be difficult in acrylics, due to the shrinkage in the paint,  I had to build up the paint on the brush more than normal to get this meatier look.   Here is a step by step of  my view of McWay Falls as taught in the recent Reddi Arts classes.

Right: The reference photo I worked from. This is difficult light, as it is midday and darkens the details too much in the camera.  As a painter you have to color correct, and paint in the haze and luminosity as you remember it.  Don't slavishly copy photos. Pick out and edit what you want to keep and eliminate or alter.

1. Lay in a preliminary sepia half tone, a classic way to begin.

2. Halftone complete, I start high and work down, sky first, keeping the premixed colors wet into wet, juicy open strokes, not too blended.

3. Start adding distant neutrals.  Trees and rocks in distant have a bit of haziness, so tone the greens down with white and blue, just block them in.

4.  While doing step three, bring lighter neutrals to the rocks. Have a variety of blue greens premixed so you can just dip the brush in and go.  Much more efficient, so you can work wet into wet.

Above: A closeup

5. Start blocking in the water.

5. continued -  Using a variety of aquas and purple greens. 

I started some in the grasses with raw sienna

6. Getting a bit more action in the surf

 7. Added dark greens, blocking in shadow areas.  Using a bit of sepia in the green for depth.

 8. Adding a variety of greens in a side corner stroke with the square 

brush or filbert to add movement and color to the grasses.

9. Adding light colors on the dark blocked in scaffold of color, to add luminosity and definition.

 Closeup Note: see mauves in water, make the water deeper and appear to have sea grass underwater.

 Closeup of surf and rock

10. Adding finally touches, flowers , brighten highlights.

Simplifying A Complex Scene

Todays watercolor subject at Reddi Arts

was taken from Pinterest,  a little town in France called Crestet.
It is similar to a watercolor I did years ago (1992, and later included in my "French Light/Florida Light show) in Castelnou.


Here is a look at it  Castelnou done plein air on location.



When I did "Castelnou" I used a film camera, and my photo wasn't so great to work from, so for class I took this next image from Pinterest, which offered much the same challenges as Castelnou. 

The process of breaking down a complex image like this can be daunting, but we will give it a shot.


















First step, the drawing and the masking fluid.

Step 2 Below: I lay down the warm washes that define the overall warm shapes in the stones 

Step 3 Below: Adding purple washes into that as a glaze later, gives the work an in shadow effect 

without graying down the luminosity of the stone work, and displays the sense of bounced light.

Step 4 Below: You can see I am starting to delineate and slowly intensify 

the cool shadow zones allowing the color to breathe in the color field spaces.

Step 5 Adding intensity to the warm colors, more glazes in shadow areas.

Step 6 Below:  

I start adding the yellows and greens and further map out the shadow areas more 

distinctly.   Notice in the lower right I put the cool "in shadow" blues for the plants

 below the pot then painted the shadows in "negatively" to bring them "up" while

 leaving them as simple color fields, not overemphasizing the details unnecessarily.

Step 7 Below:  I start mapping out the tree and some branches (don't

 go branch crazy here, less is more, you can always add more later) 

and dark green details in the foliage. Some architectural details are emerging.

Step 8 Below: Remove the masking fluid to see what you have, remember

 the masking fluid is to maintain the whites, not the shadows, 

you have to think backwards here, always preserving the light.

Step 9 Below: This is where it gets interesting, you are slowly pushing the ranges of dark
and light and working the boundaries to mine and leverage your warms against the cools.
Example:  Look at the purple shadows, then next to them there is a little burnt sienna next to that,
bridging the light to the dark so you feel a shift in temperature.  I also boosted the cool blue wash in the wall left, to get it more in shadow.  Note: I probably could have been bolder here.

Step 10 the finale: final touch ups and color tweeks are added here, accents etc.

Painting With Light

During a recent watercolor class at Reddi Arts, I realized, while trying to explain what I was doing to the students, that I was really "painting with light"!  Watercolor is a different kind of painting experience, a lot like herding cats.  With oils and acrylics you can force the medium to comply with your intention, by correcting ad infinitum.  With watercolors you don't have the luxury of "fixing" your mistakes easily.  You have to cautiously plan out your moves in advance, requiring forethought and skill.  Mostly you are putting the lightest colors from the sun, on first.  I put these on with yellows or golden tones made of raw sienna, and work around the color wheel to the cool colors.  I save the darkest accents til last, not rushing to them too soon.  Here below is a mediteranean scene from Eze, France, I downloaded the photo from Pinterest.   It served as a good example of bounced light into interior spaces, such as the garden left corner. 

 

My approach to watercolor is a bit different and was another part of the lesson plan.  I do not do preliminary drawing first.  This of course is scary to most, but if you are brave enough and have reasonably good drawing skills, and OBSERVE the subject for a long time you may find my method is faster and renders a more light filled result.  I lay in the lightest color first as shown below

While the drawing is being developed I am using a lot of water in my mix changing colors from warm to cool in the spaces as needed , and letting the colors bleed or "wick" a bit into each other naturally.  This gives the final work a more light filled look.  It is as if I am "painting with light"!

With stone details I try to understate them a bit 

to keep them from looking overworked and stiff.

I will add the darker stone shadows later.

 I try to be cognizant of the the light and where it must be brightest,

 ALWAYS reserving it in some light version.  Once it is gone, it is gone, 

so pay attention to the light.   I concentrate on the lighter versions of the 

color of the shadow areas, waiting til later to move to stronger shadows.

I wanted to get the trees in, although I will go back in and add more depth to 

the cottage shadow wall later.  First I wanted to see the wall in context of the

 background trees to know exactly how deep to make my shadow glaze mix.  

Doing the green, I starting with a warm yellow mix first wetly.  To that I would

add the various greens letting them wick into the yellows,  painting negatively

where the foreground bushes meet the background cypress.

Next I needed to start preparing where the overhanging tree would go

 so I could map out the sky colors so as not to place too much blue 

where later I would need light yellows for the leaves.  I used light

yellow sienna washes here too, adding slowly the burnt sienna and blues 

later directly next to the yellow wet washes to allow for a natural look.

Below: You can detect the tree has mostly dried.  While this was happening 

I took the opportunity to add deepened dark neutrals into the wall shadow 

and behind the palm fronds.  Different levels of chrome green washes and 

bright yellow glazes emphasize the shadow and the light on the frond leaves. 

The tiles received a bit of detail glazes in cerulean blue cool tones,  contrasted 

by burnt sienna warms.

Below:   I tend to believe a bit less blue is better than too much.  I actually did 

the water seaand island first, doing the sky color last. Water and cerulean blue

mixed with horizon blue create sea and sky. Some purple is in the island.

Below: I started introducing bright yellows where the leaves were to go.  

Into that I would plan to add different yellow sienna and chrome greens, 

maintainingbright light filled leaves.

 It is important to create some dark leaves occasionally placed to 

"lead the eye" for composition. I added a few understated branches and a 

few darker greens for visual interest.

Above: The final painting  "Eze" Provence, 31cm X 41cm 

(12"X16" on Arches watercolor cold pressed paper)

Laying in the Initial Color

When starting a large mural, such as this small part of a dining room, I am often struck by how exciting (the possibilities) and terrifying (the possibilities). It can give you pause, to meditate on what you are undertaking.  I'm a finisher, but in order to finish I need to start!  Tackling a key piece, an "anchor" element, such as this sculpted pot, helps me get in the flow of the paint, so I can build a world around it, surf this big wave in.  I start with this because I don't have to think too much, just to get light, shadow and tone in blue, polishing it to classically form the work to be both dream and believable.  Let me share the process here.

Starting With the Charcoal Drawing in Oil Painting

I recently painted a classical "bluesaille" mural in a large dining room.  I wanted to share some of the process.  In the video here you see me laying out in loose sketch form, a corner where trees are the predominant feature. I will lay the oil colors directly over this drawing, using some of the charcoal in the drawing that moves with the glaze, to darken and tone the preliminary blocking in of the painting.

Learning, Fun, and Inspiration

I have learned from teaching children, that remembering the element of fun is an important feature of learning. When we are not enjoying the process, we tend to close down, trudge forward reluctantly, and absorb little. More importantly we don't make the connections we need to apply what we learn to our whole life. Art imitates life, but first we have to live! Here I am (upon request) drumming, as I often do to a tune I love, on a variety of paint cans to get in the mood. Drumming to is an art form. Sometimes I get too caught up in the art of making art to sell, and want to distance myself from that motivator. Drumming is what I use to "get me in the zone" ! The kids seem to love it as well. What gets you in the zone?

Illusionism: Capturing Luminosity and Mood

"There is no real light on the canvas, just the illusion of real light coming from

 it's surface" I said as we looked at the phone screen exploring the work in 

admiration of Joseph Mc Gurl.  I was having lunch after class with a good 

friend of mine Henry Von Genk ( www.henryvongenk.com ) the other day, 

and he was speaking favorably about a new artist he discovered named 

Joseph McGurl.  McGurl's work displays a fine ability to capture light,

 mood and luminosity through deft use of oil glazing, a skill not often

 practice by artists today.  I thought later, that it would be fun to try to do

 the same painting in acrylics to see if I could get the luminosity using 

acrylic glazes, and extender.

Below: A painting "Transfiguration - Oil on Panel - 20 x 36"

  (for more work by by Joseph McGurl see  www.josephmcgurl.com )

 As you can see there is a classical sensibility , and a highly disciplined level of 

glazing required to achieve this smooth graduation of light and "glow".  I will not

 have the luxury of oil to give me loads of open time, so I propose to show how

 to properly use extender and glaze combinations to buy more open time

 so we could achieve the subtle shift of light we need.   So let's begin.  

I am using Golden acrylics and some Liquitex brands and a small 16" X 20" canvas.

Below: 

First I color washed the canvas with a raw sienna with a small amount of burnt sienna

 and water mix to give a warm base and to "kill the white"!  Then I started the drawing

 with a filbert brush and a mix of burnt sienna and burnt umber, "blocking in" the

 shadows , and creating a halftone effect.  I am not concerned with details.

Above:

Next I worked in some base lighter glazes that would eventually be highlight areas.

  I used raw sienna glaze in the grassy areas, light glazes in the sky to "map out" 

where cloud banks would be, using white and burnt umber, mostly white . 

TIP: With light preliminary applications like this, you set up a tonal base for future darker glazes to help them glow.  Dark on dark won't glow, but dark glaze on light base will!

Then I  premixed piles of paint in subtle ranges of light yellows, to blue greys.  My goal
 is to apply each portion in a map-like way, but then blending the two wet 
edges together to make a new set of blended colors creating a "lost edge "effect
 You will not get this perfect the first time.  It may come out too dark or too light,
 too blue or yellow, but glazing layers can fix that later, and will "mix in the eye".

Below: You can see I am adding more layers and working some sky color into the water areas.

Successive layers of glazes in the sky, yellows, oranges (with white) light purple

 neutrals glazes, blue grays, burnt umber glazes overlap to create multilayered mixes

 in the eye.  In the grasses I added combinations of raw sienna and versions of

 glazed greens with chrome green, and sap to "colorize the halftone".   I  made

"muddied greens" (for shadows, using burnt umber and some purples mixed into

 the chrome and hookers green for the shadows and cool dark greens. Don't over

 simplify your greens.  It is good to have a variety of green mixes here, nature is

 complex.  I add touches of extender in light yellow and white to enhance

 the glow in the sun area, blending it out to create light rays.

Already you can see it coming together.  The sky color in the water is getting 

weaved together to set up the light base for the dark glazes yet to come.  

Some artists may leave it bright like this, and it would be OK, but I am setting 

a goal of having that mood lighting that is evident in Josephs work.  So stay 

tuned for the final portions of this.  I will deepen the sky tones, maintaining 

the lost edge effects, deepen glazes in the water to add mood 

and depth to this painting.  

 

PART 3 At today's class the steps below were the final steps 

to close the aperture on this light show!

As you can make out a blue glaze was added in several locations throughout 

the painting to deepen and cool the shadows.  I also added a richer mix of 

chrome green, cerulean blue and white in a glaze in the sky area and a thin 

version in the clouds and water.  I came over the bottom corner with some 

glaze afterwards of burnt umber to deepen that still. 

Above :

you can see how I began "pulling up the lights" like turning up a light switch.

  By setting yellow oxide next to yellow, next to white, you get subtle shifts

 in relationships that tell the eye a lot of light is shining there. I added a

 bit of cool purple glazed into the water below that as a compliment

to the yellow on the color wheel.

You should be able to move this piece around to 

get a closeup view of the various elements of the artwork.