the painterly approach: an artist's guide to seeing, painting and expressing

ThePainterlyApproach

AnArtist’sGuidetoSeeing,PaintingandExpressing

BobRohm

NORTHLIGHTBOOKSCINCINNATI,OHIO

www.artistsnetwork.com

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ThePainterlyApproach:AnArtist’sGuidetoSeeing,PaintingandExpressing.Copyright©2008byBobRohm.PrintedinSingapore.Allrightsreserved.Nopartofthisbookmaybereproducedinanyformor by any electronic or mechanical means including information storage and retrieval systems withoutpermissioninwritingfromthepublisher,exceptbyareviewerwhomayquotebriefpassagesinareview.Published by North Light Books, an imprint of F+W Publications, Inc., 4700 East Galbraith Road,Cincinnati,Ohio,45236.(800)289-0963.FirstEdition.

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Thepainterlyapproach:anartist’sguidetoseeing,paintingandexpressing/byBobRohm.

p.cm.ISBN978-1-58180998-5(hardcover:alk.paper)ISBN-13:978-1-60061-650-1(EPUB)eISBN:978-1-60061-650-11.Painting--Technique.I.Title.ND1500.R582008

751--dc222008005538

EDITOR:KellyC.MesserlyDESIGNER:BrianRoethPRODUCTIONCOORDINATOR:MattWagner

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AbouttheAuthor

Bobwasbornandraised incentralPennsylvaniaandhasbeenpaintingformostofhislife.HereceivedformalarttrainingattheYorkAcademyofArtsinPennsylvania.Aftergraduating,hepaintedpart timeashefollowedacareerinfilmandvideoproductionthateventuallyledhimtoresideinTexas.Hehasbeenpaintingfulltimesincetheearly1990s.Bob juries shows, teaches workshops, lectures and demonstrates in oil and

pastelmediums.Knownforhisexpressivebrushworkandanability tocapturethepoetryof light,hehasreceivedmanyawardsandisasignaturememberofseveral art organizations, including the Pastel Society of America and OilPainters of America. He has been featured in several books and periodicals,including Southwest Art, American Artist, The Artist’sMagazine, The PastelJournal,InternationalArtistandPureColor,publishedbyNorthLightBooks.

METRICCONVERSIONCHART

Toconvert to multiplybyInches Centimeters 2.54Centimeters Inches 0.4Feet Centimeters 30.5Centimeters Feet 0.03Yards Meters 0.9Meters Yards 1.1

ARTONCOVER

TRANQUILILLUMINATION

Oilonlinenpanel18"×24"(46cm×61cm)

ARTON♣

YELLOWTREESOilonlinenpanel24"×18"(61cm×46cm)

LAKESIDECOLOROilonlinenpanel,18"×24"(46cm×61cm)

AcknowledgmentsIwouldliketothankthemanyartistsandteacherswhosograciouslyshared

their knowledge with me. To Albert Handell, who taught me so much andcontinues to inspireme; andespecially tomy teacher,mentor andgood friendAnnTempleton.ThoseofuswhoarefortunateenoughtoknowAnntreasureher.IalsowanttothankJamieMarkle,Publisher,forhisguidanceandrecognition

of this book project; Kelly Messerly, Editor, for her help in organizing mymaterialsandeditingmyramblingwords;andMichaelChesleyJohnsonforhishelpdevelopingandwritingtheconceptforthisbook.

DedicationThisbookisdedicatedtomysonDavid,daughterKelly,andespeciallymy

wifeLynn,whohasencouragedandsupportedmeinmypassionandpursuitofpainting.

tableofcontents

INTRODUCTION

1MaterialsDiscover the materials and equipment necessary for a painterly

approach.

2ThePainterlyApproachBringanaturalandemotionalfeelingtoyourwork.

3FundamentalsofthePainterlyApproachThe keys to using composition, value, color and mood in a painterly

way.

4ThePainterlyProcessHow you construct a painting determines your success in executing

youridea.

5BeyondtheFundamentalsPainting is a series of choices: what to see, what to include, how to

representitandhowtoexpressit.

THEPAINTERLYCHECKLIST

introduction

MARSHPATH


Painterly is a term that is used far toowidely and often incorrectlywhendescribingart.Itseemsthatdrawingissomehowconsideredalesserformoffineart.ThefirstthingthatIwantyoutoclearlyunderstandisthatitisnotlesserinanyway.Itisjustdifferent.Painterlyanddrawingarethetwobasicapproachestocreatingart.Eachisequallyvalid.Everyapproachyouhaveeverheardaboutisavariationorcombinationofthesetwo.Myhopeisforyoutounderstandthedifferencesbetweenthetwoandfinda

balanced approach for your own work. More has been written and taughtregarding the drawing approach, probably because it was the way of the OldMasters and it iswherewe start as childrenwith crayons and coloringbooks,fillinginaccurateandunchangeableoutlinesinsteadofcreatingrelationshipsofmasses.Drawing isa linearapproach tocreatingapaintingwithanemphasison the

exactness of the subject contours and form.Thepainterly approach is a shape

andmass approach.There are almost asmany variations and combinations ofthesetwoasthereareartists.Nomatterhowyouwork,thestartingpointshouldbebasedinoneortheotherofthesetwoconceptswithaclearunderstandingofthedifference.Thenyouwillchoosetouseoneortheotherfromapositionofknowledge.Thepainterlinessandpoetryofpaintingishowweuseline,edgesandmasses

to suggest and express ourselves as artists. As with literature, the poetry ofpainting suggests rather than fully describes the subject as in a textbook ortechnical manual. A work started in a linear approach can be finished in apainterlyandpoeticmannerbyloosingedgesanddefinition,causingtheviewertobecomeengagedinthoughtandintheinterpretationofthesubjectandmood.Thepainterlyapproachsuggestsform,detailandmoodfromthestartaseach

partrelatestothepoetryofthewhole.

EVENINGWETLANDREFLECTIONOilonlinenpanel30"×40"(76cm×102cm)

1Materials

Withtherightcombinationofmaterialsandequipment,you’llfinditeasiertoget the results youwantwith a painterly approach.This chapterwill jump-startyouontheroadtolearningtopaintinapainterlyway.

Brushes

Consideryourbrushanextensionofyourarmandtheconduitthatcarriestheenergyofpainting fromyou to thecanvas. It’s themost important tool for thepainterlypainter.Itwillhelpyouexecuteyourideasaboutpainteffectsandthesurface.Try to find thebrush thatgivesyou the lookyouwantand theeffectsyoulike,andthenstickwithit.Brushes come inmany different shapes, but Imainly use flats, brights and

filberts.Aflathasasquareend.Thebrightlookslikeaflat,butthebristlesareshorter.Afilberthasaroundedend.Use flats for landscapes, and flats and filberts for figure painting. You can

layer thepaint andworkwet-into-wetwith a flat.Thebright tends todig intolower layers of paint and disturb them.Brights are fine for underpainting andlayingdownthefirstlayer.Afterthatyou’llneedthemoreflexibleflat.When used for figure work, however, the flat’s rectangular shape creates

pronouncedangularedges,whichlookoutofplaceonthefigure’ssoftcontours.Here, the filbert isbest since its long, flexibleyet rounded tipproduces a lessobviousedge.Theflat’sangularedgesareappropriateforaruggedfigure,butifyou’retryingtocaptureasoftorromanticmood,thefilbertisabetterchoice.

BrushesforInsideorOutsideWorkUsethesamenaturalbristlebrushsetwhileworkingindoorsoroutdoors.For

paintingoutdoors,carryonlythebrushesyouneed:fourno.6flats,twono.8or10 flats andoneno. 12 flat.Also carry a no. 2 roundor an extra long filbert.Thesearegreatforcreatingtreelimbsandsmall,cleanmarksofcolor.Useasmall,softsablelinerforsigningyourname.It’sagoodideatokeepa

supplyofnewbrushesonhand.Youneverknowwhenyou’llneed thatclean,chiseledstrokethatyoujustcan’tgetwithawornbrush.

AcrylicBrushesYou need to use different brushes with acrylic. For laying in masses, use

mostly large, inexpensive 1-inch (25mm) to 2-inch (51mm) bristle brushes,including small house-painting brushes. For more controlled painting, use avarietyofnylonflatsinsizesfromno.6tono.12.Thenaturalbristlesofgoodoilbrushescan’thandlethewaterusedtothinacrylic.Theywillswellandlosetheir shape. Plus, the way you scrub in layers of acrylics would ruin a goodbristlebrushinnotime.

SAVEYOURWORNFLATSIfyouusebrights, there’s littleneedtobuythem.Brushesweardownquickly,andflatsbecomebrightsinnotime.SinceIpreferthelongerflat,Ihavestacksofhalf-wornonesthatlooksimilartobrand-newbrights.

BrushesMybrushofchoiceisthebristleflat.Mostly,Iusetheno.6,butIalsocarry

twono.8or10flatsplusano.12forunderpainting.Newflatscancarryalotofpaintandlayitontopofotherlayersofwetpaint;wornflatsandbrightstendtodig into a wet surface. I also like the chiseled look the squared flat givescompared to the curve of a filbert. That curved shape iswell suited to figurepainting,soforthatIusebristlefilbertsinsizesno.4throughno.10.I like new brushes, but I’ve seen many excellent professionals work

exclusivelywithold,worn-outones.Thisproves that there isnomagicbrush.It’samatteroffindingwhichtoolhelpsyouachieveyourgoal.

PaintingKnives

The painting knife is also a valuable tool for painterly painting. You canpaintveryeffectivelywithjustknivesandnobrushes.But,ifyoudouseboth,becareful you don’t overuse the knife. It creates a distinctive look, and a smallamountgoesalongway.Don’tgiveboththebrushandknifeequaltimeonthecanvas.Eitherthebrushortheknifemustdominate.Theknifehasanadvantageoverthebrushinthatitcanlaydowncleancolor

regardlessofhowmuchpaintisonthesurface.Cleancolorcanbedifficultwitha brush—even the flexible flat can dig down and get muddy into the lowerlayers.Theknifecansliderightacrosstheverytoplayerofpaint.It’sagoodideatohaveatleasttwopaintingknivesinyourpaintkitandinthe

studio.Tryalarge,3-inch(75mm)paintingknifeandasmaller1-inch(25mm)knife.Apaletteknifeisbluntandstiff,whileapaintingknifeisflexiblewithagoodspring to it.Youcanuseapaletteknife toscrapeyourpalette,mixpaintandscrapeouttheoccasionalpaintingthatgoesawry.However,Iprefertousealarge,3-inch (75mm)paintingknife for thesepurposes instead. It’salsousefulforquietingafieldofgrasses,theleavesofatreeoranyareathat’sbecometoobusywithcolorortexture.Since the 1-inch (25mm) painting knife is smaller, it’smore precise. Spend

moremoneyforthissmallknifetogetgoodquality,anduseitonlyatparticulartimeswhenthequalityofthestrokeisimportant.Usethisknifetomakesmalllinesandaccentsandtoemphasizethemostdynamicedges.Bytheway,asmallpaintingknifeisdelicate.Ifitevergetsbent,throwitaway.Nomatterhowyoutrytostraightenit,it’llneverberightandnevergiveyouthecontroltomakeaclean,straightedge.It’scheaper tobuyanewonethantostrugglewithabentone.Whenworkingwithacrylics,uselarge,inexpensiveplasticknivesformixing

butagoodmetalknifeforpainting.There’snodifferencebetweenusingknivesinoilandusingtheminacrylicsfortheireffectivenessinthepainting.

PaintingKnivesAlwayscarrytwopaintingknives.Usethelargeronetomixcolorandclean

yourpalette.Youcanoccasionallyuseittomakealargemark,quietabusyareaofgrasses,scrapedownaweakareaorscrapeawayanentirepainting.The smaller knife, about 1-inch (25mm) long and narrow, should be used

strictlyforpainting.Noticethesharp,clearedgethatwasplacedontheroofinthe paintingwith this knife.Use it for dynamic accents, but don’t get carriedawayoritwillnolongerbeanaccent.

PAINTINGEDGESWITHAKNIFEYoucanonlymakeonegoodedgeat a time, sodon’t fight it.Make thegoodedgewhereyouneedit,thengobackandmodifytheotheredgeslater.

Paints

OilPaintsWhen selecting your paints, choose a consistency that best suits how you

work.Somebrandsarefirmwhileothersarecreamyandsmoothandperfectforpainterlyeffects.Somearetoosoftanddon’tlayerwell.Paintershaveindividualpreferences, but generally, those working in similar styles tend to choose thesamebrands.Mybrandsmaynotbetoyourliking,sotryseveralbrandsunderdifferentconditionstodecidewhatisbestforyourstyle.One thing to consider is the pigment-to-filler ratio in paints.Many student-

grade brands use high-quality pigments, but they’re so loadedwith fillers thattheir tinting strength is weakened and you need a lot of each hue to get themixtureyouwant.Amoreexpensive,artist-gradebrandhasmorepurepigment—and thusahigherprice—but it letsyouget themixturesyouwantwith lesseffortandlesspaint.Agood-quality,highly-pigmentedpaintforwhichyoupaymorepertubewillgofurtherthanatubeofthestudent-gradebrand.Onesideeffectofusingquality,artist-gradepaints is thatyouwillusemore

white and less pigment because of the greater tinting strength of these paints.White is the least expensive paint on your palette, so, by purchasing qualitypaints,you’lllikelyspendthesameamountoverall—ormaybeevenalittleless—thanbybuyingcheaperpaints.Besides price and quality, youneed to think about chemistry.The colors of

Holbein, Gamblin and Rembrandt stay consistent within the range of colorsthroughout.Iknowwhattoexpectwhenworkingwiththematanytemperatureorenvironmentalcondition.Herearesomethingstolookforwhenyou’rebuyingcolors:•Trymanybrandstofindthetintingstrengththatworksbestforyou.•Getbrandsofaconsistencythatsuitsyourstyle.•Getgood-qualitypigmentthatwon’tmigrateintoothercolorsorfadeovertime.

•Getpaintsthatrespondtoheatandcoldinthesameway(forexample,onethatdoesn’tgetstiffwhiletheothersremainsmooth).

•Getthebestpaintforyourneedsatapriceyoucanafford.•Don’tbeafraid tousea lotofpaint. It’s farbetter to throwsomeawaythantotrytopaintwithoutenoughonyourpaletteorbrush.

Here’sa tipfor that last item:Buyexpensivepigments inmoderatelypricedbrands and the less-expensive pigments in the more-expensive brands. Forexample, use Rembrandt Cadmium Yellow (expensive pigment, moderatelypriced brand) and Holbein Ultramarine Blue (less-expensive pigment, more-expensivebrand).

Try togetused to layingoutyourcolors thesamewayeach timeyoupaintandorganizetheminthelogicalorderofthecolorwheel.Startwiththewarmestandlightestvaluesontheright,movethroughtheredstothecoolestanddarkestblues. Ifyou laid thesecolors inacircle theywouldformacolorwheel.Withthislayout,youcanaddnewcolorsbyplacingthemwheretheyfallonthecolorwheel.

OilColorPaletteMybasicoilcolorpaletteconsistsofthesepaints:•CadmiumYellowLight•CadmiumOrangeorMonoOrange•BurntSienna•PeryleneRedorAlizarinPermanent•UltramarineBlue•Viridian•Titanium-ZincWhite

Isometimesusemoreorfewercolors,differenthuesanddifferentbrands.I’lluseanddiscussmanydifferenthuesandcombinations in thisbook,but this ismymostcommonlyusedoilpaletteforbothstudioandonlocation.

AcrylicColorPaletteMyacrylic palette is a smallmuffin tin stored in an airtight plastic palette

seal.Ispraythepalettewithwaterandsealitaftereachpaintingsessiontokeepthecolorsmoist.EventuallythemuffintinwillrustthroughonthebottomandIwillsimplyreplace it.Thecolorsstayfreshand lasta long time.SinceIworkthese colors fairly transparent, thewater accumulation fromspraying isnot anissue.Dabtheexcesswithapapertowelasneeded.

Asyoutakecolorthebrushispointedintothecolorpool.I’mleft-handedsothewhiteisatright.Ifyouareright-handed,startwiththewhiteandyellowontheleft.By laying your colors out the same way each time, you get used to their

placement and it becomes second nature to select each hue.One less thing tothinkaboutwhileyouarepaintingisaverygoodthing.

AcrylicPaintsAswithoilpaints,artist-gradeacrylicshaveabetterratioofpigmenttofiller.

The student-grade brands tend to have a thinner consistency with less tintingstrength.Inaddition,thelightfastnessofstudent-gradepaintscanbeanissue.Ifyousellyourwork,youoweittoyourclientstousequalitymaterials.Myacrylic colorpalettehas expandedquite abit frommyoilone. I find it

hardertomixawidevarietyofcleancolorswithacrylic.Manyhuestendtograyoutwhenmixed.Thecolorsyoucanmixaregreat,buttherangeislimited.I’vefound thatworkingwith an expandedpalette givesme a better rangeof cleanhues.Whenitcomestoacrylics,I’mjustnotsatisfiedwithless!Handle acrylic differently from oil. Thin acrylics to create soft edges with

transparencyanddry-brusheffectstobuildcolorsinlayers.Withoilsthecolorsaremore direct and less layered.Acrylics can look very opaque if you’re notcareful.Forathinningagent,usethreepartsLiquitexfluidMatteMediummixedwithonepartdistilledwater.MypaletteincludesthefollowingGoldenHeavyBodyAcrylicpaints:•CadmiumYellowLight•YellowOchre•CadmiumYellowMedium•CadmiumOrange•BurntSienna•QuinacridoneRedLight•QuinacridoneRed•QuinacridoneCrimson•UltramarineViolet•CobaltBlue•ChromiumOxideGreen•PermanentGreenLight•TitaniumWhite

Ioftenaddothersthatappealtomeatthetime,butthisisthepaletteIalwaysstartwith.

DEVELOPASTANDARDPALETTEI keep the basic palette pretty standard, but I love to experimentwith variousbrandsandpigments.Youshouldfindthebrandandpigmentsthatarerightforyourstylebeforeyoustartexperimentingwithothers,however.Thesestandardpigmentswillgiveyouabenchmarkyoucancompareeverythingto.

Pastels

Pastels are often used as a drawingmedium, but they can also be used toachieveapainterlystyle.Using the linearapproachwithpastelandallowingalot of the paper color to dominate the work is typical of drawing. Handlingpastelslikeoils,suchasmodifyingmassesoflayeredcolortoproduceasurfacequalityofthickandthinshapes,ispainting.Thebeautyofpastelpaintingisthatitcombinesthebestqualitiesofdrawingandpaintinginapainterlymanner.Keepinmindthatpaintingversusdrawingisanapproachtoconstructingthe

workofart,nottheresultofwhetherthemediumiswetordry.Thinkofpastelsashavingthreedegreesofsoftnessandhardness.Atoneend

sitsthethinsticksofhardpastelssuchasNuPastelandCretacolorbrands.Theselaydowntheleastamountofpigment,makethinlinesandfillareaswhereyoudon’twantalotofpigmentbuiltup.In the middle are many brands of different sizes, including Rembrandt,

Winsor & Newton, Mount Vision, Daler-Rowney, Holbein, Art Spectrum,Girault and, on the softer side of thismiddle range,Unison. Some are harderthan others, but there’s a big range between the hardest and softest brands.Considerthismiddlerangeastheworkhorseofthepastelsets.Withthem,youcandepositafairamountofpigment,butthey’restillfirmenoughtocreatethin,crispmarksandlayercolorwithoutcloggingthetoothofthesurface.AtthesoftestendsitSennelier,GreatAmericanArtWorks,Schmincke,Diane

Townsend and Terry Ludwig, to name a few. These luscious, soft pastels arebuttery and deposit a lot of pigmentwith each stroke. They’re great for solidareasofcolor,finalstatementsandaccents.

PastelsforLocationWorkOnlocationIcarrytwoboxesofpastels.Thesmallerboxcontainsafullset

ofhardpastelsandaselectionofpastelandcharcoalpencils.Thelargerfoldingbox hasmypalette ofmedium and soft pastels.All are half sticks or smaller,withoutwrappers.Thisisthebestwaytopackthelargestvarietyofcolor,valueandgrade.Theyarearrangedfromrighttoleft,withyellows,reds,violets,blues,greens and dull neutral hues. This is the same basic layout asmy oil palette.Consistencyisimportant.

PastelsforStudioWorkOrganizeyourcolorsbyprimaryandsecondarycolors,light,warmandcool

tints,and,finally,neutralcolors.Storetheminplastictraysforeach.Keephardpastels separate from the others, but combine the medium and soft ones. Bymakingasmalltestmark,youcanquicklydetermineastick’sdegreeofsoftness,andaftertimeyouwillmakethisdeterminationsimplybytouch.

PastelsforOutdoorWorkAfteryearsoftrialanderror,I’vereachedasetthatworkswellformeinthe

field,withan“on-location”boxcontainingamixofabouttwohundredmediumandsoftpastels.Thesoftestpastelsarelightvaluecolors,usedinbigareassuchastheskyandforbrilliantaccents.Themiddlerangeincludesvaluesandcolorsthatworkwellforbuildingtheformsandmassesofalandscape.Becauseofthegreatvarietyofgreens found in landscapes, thismiddle rangealsohasagreatvarietyofgreens—infact,morevarietythananyothercolor.Carryasmallboxwithacomplete setofhardpastels,whichyoucanuse fordarkareas, accentsandunderpainting.

PaintingSurfaces

OilandAcrylicSurfacesForoilpainting,useanoil-primedlinenwithamediumtexture,specifically

Claessens#66.Foracrylics,watercolorpaperandacrylic-primedcottonorlinencanvasare suitable.Youcanbe far less critical about surfaces for acrylic thanthoseforoilandpastel.Acrylicsareflexibleand,whenproperlyvarnished,verydurableonavarietyofsupports.Iprefermyoil-primedlinentobemountedonboardratherthanonstretcher

bars. The paintingwill last longer because it won’t expand and contract withchangesinhumidityortemperature.Flexingwillcrackadry,brittleoilpainting.Also,Iliveatalowelevation,butmanyofmygalleriesarelocatedabove5,000feet(1,524m)inSantaFe,NewMexico,andAspen,Colorado.Whenastretchedcanvas goes from a lower altitude to a higher one, it expands and loses itstautness.Notonlydoes it lookbad,but flexingcandamage thesurface.Manytimes in thepast,gallerieswereforced to re-stretchworks,whichIhad topayfor,ofcourse.Boardsarealsothinner thanstretchedcanvas,andthusmorecompact.Also,

the panels don’t transmit light. Stretched canvas lets light pass through like awindowcurtain. Ifyouhaveever tried topaintoutdoorsonastretchedcanvaswiththesunbeamingthroughitfrombehind,youknowwhatI’mtalkingabout.Thatlightmakesitverydifficulttoseethecolorsandvaluescorrectly.Youcanhavelargestudiopanelscustom-madeusingthesamebirchplywood

astheon-locationpanels;justmakesuretheyhavewoodstripsaddedtothebackforsupport.Oneofthesepanelsweighsaboutthesameasastretchedcanvas,butwillnotexpandandloosenlikeonethatisstretched.

PastelSurfacesForpastels,useasandedpaperthatholdslayersofcolorwithouttheneedfor

fixative.MypreferredsurfaceforpastelpaintingisWallisSandedPastelPapermounted onmuseumboard.Try sandedpastel paper dry-mounted onmuseumboardorGatorboard.Trimthemountedboardstotherightsizesotheywillfitin the samewet panel boxes as your oil paintings,making travelwith both acinch.Therearesomanyqualitypapersavailable todaythatyoudon’tneedtomakeyourown,unlessyouwanttoexperiment.

FRAMINGPASTELSDon’t frame pastelswithmats. Instead, add a plastic spacer to the glass, thentape theglass,spacerandmountedpainting together to formasandwich that’seasy to frame and store. Use glass with UV protection, such as ConservationClearorConservationReflectionControlMuseumGlass,toeliminatereflectionsandprotect thepastel.Use the same frames thatyou’duse foroilpaintings tominimizeyourinventoryofframes.Ingalleriesandshows,mypastelshangrightalongsidetheoils,andwithoutmatsandtheglareofglasstheyfitrightintothegrouping.

PaintingSurfacesHereareseveralpanelboxesfromanumberofdifferentmanufacturers,from

fine qualitywood to plastic and plywoodwithmovable slots to accommodatevarious sized panels.Many easel and panelmakers nowoffer them as part oftheirproductlines.Considercarefullythesizesyouworkwithoutdoors,ifyou

are travelingbycarorbyair, andhowmanywetpaintingsyouneed to carry.Whentravelingbycar,Icarryseveralsizesplussmallboxesformypaintingkit.Whentravelingbyair,Ilimitmypanelstoonesizeandhaveonesmalltwo-slotboxforthepaintkit,plusaboxwithmoreslotskeptinmysuitcase.

Solvents,MediumsandVarnishes

SolventsGamsol byGamblin is a safe solvent to use to thinmixtures and rinse oil

paintingbrushes.IalsouseTurpenoidNaturaltocleanandconditionmybrushesattheendoftheday.Ifmybrusheswillsitformorethantwodays,Iwashthemwithsoapandwater.OtherwiseIjustrinsethemwithTurpenoidNaturalat theendofeachpaintingsession.

MediumsTherearemanyfinepaintingmediumsonthemarket.Somearedesignedto

work like the traditionalmixtureofonepart standoil, onepart damarvarnishandfourpartsturpentineormineralspirits.Thisisagoodmedium,but,truthbetold,Iusemediumveryseldomthesedays.Ionceuseditforthinningmixturesand for glazing, but after I settled on a palette of colors with a smoothconsistency,IfoundIdon’tneedamedium.Intheearlystagesofapainting,youmayfindithelpfultouseasmallamount

of mineral spirits to thin the paint so you can cover the surface more easily.Don’tmakeyourpainttoowatery,though.You’rebetteroffscrubbingthepaintinto thesurfacewithvery littlesolventormediumwhenworkingwet-into-wetthantakingasloppingwetbrushtoit.Adrierapplicationmakesitmucheasiertoaddwetlayersofpaint.Itisagoodideatouseamediumwhenyoutravel.Atouchofaquick-drying

medium,likeWinsor&Newton’sLiquinorGamblin’sGalkydLite,dabbedintoeachpaintmixture speeds up the dryingprocess.Thismakes it easier to packand transport paintings. But easy does it—these mediums set up very fast inwarm,dryclimates,andyourpaintsurfacemaybecometackybeforeyoufinishworking.Nothingismorefrustratingthanastickypaintsurface.Mediumsareusefulinthestudioforglazing.Whenreviewingwork,youmay

find an area that’s too intense or that doesn’t recede into the distance enough.Justworka littleLiquinorGalkydLite into thedrysurfacewitha large, firmbrush.Notonlydoesitwetthesurface,makingitglistenlikefreshpaint,butitprovidesabinderifyouapplyaglazetochangeanarea’shueorvalue.

VarnishesandFixativesInoilpainting,varnishisusedtorestoretheintensityofcolorsafterthey’ve

dried,andtoprovidearemovablelayertoprotectthepaintsurface.Overtime,an exposed paint surfacemay discolor and accumulate dust and dirt from theenvironment. An isolation layer of varnish allows these contaminants to beremovedwiththecorrectsolventandcare.Anoilpaintingdriesbyoxidation.Thepaintstartstocurefirstatthesurface

andthenbacktotheground.Thethickerthepaint,thelongerittakesfortheairtocureitproperly.Varnishisdesignedtosealapaintingtoprotectitfromtheair,soifit’susedtoosoon,thepaintwon’tproperlycureandmaywrinkleorcrack.Oneschoolofthoughtsaysthatifyousprayvarnishonapaintingwhileit’s

stillwet,thevarnishbecomespartofthepaint,andthisisOK.Well,it’snotOK.Yes, thevarnishbecomespartof thepaint surface,but it still seals thesurfaceandpreventspropercuring.Retouchvarnishisatemporaryvarnish.Likeregularvarnish,italsorestores

thebrillianceofthecolors.However,it’sthinnedsoitcreatesapermeablelayerthat allows paint to continue to cure. But if you lay it on too thickly, it’s nodifferentfromacoatofregularvarnish,andthepaintwon’tcureproperly.Applyretouchvarnishthinlytoafreshpainting,andagain,don’toverdoit.For large paintings, such as 24" × 30" (61cm × 76cm), brush on retouch

varnishratherthanapplyitfromaspraycan.Carefulbrushingproducesamoreconsistentandevencoating.Onsmallworks,though,thespraycanworksfine.Timing is important when varnishing. Follow these steps to varnish your

paintingproperly:•When thepainting isdry to the touchand sometimeduring the first sixmonths,brushonaretouchingvarnish.

• After sixmonths, when the painting is fully cured, apply a conservingglossvarnish,alsowithabrush.BesuretouseaglossfinishvarnishthatcontainsUVfiltersaswell.

•Foracrylicpaintings,waittwoweeksforthepainttocureproperlyandallthe moisture to evaporate. Then apply a layer of soft gel gloss as anisolationlayer,letitdryovernightandthenapplythevarnish.

Iprefer tovarnishmyacrylicswithGoldenVarnishwithUVLS (ultravioletlight stabilizers).You canuse either amineral spirit-basedversionor awater-based one. (I use the mineral spirit version because it produces a toughersurface.)ThevarnishisavailableinGloss,SatinorMatteandprovidesUVlightfilteringwithoutdiscoloration.Pastelsareadifferentmatter. Idonotrecommendusinganyfixative.Ifyou

feelyoumustuse it, thereare a fewacrylic formson themarket that seem tohavevery littleeffecton thecolorsorsurface,but thatdohelpbind thepastelparticles together. The one time youmight need fixative is to darken an areabefore applying more layers of pastel, and it’s a good idea to keep a can oftraditionalworkablefixativearoundthestudiojustforthispurpose.

PASTELSANDFIXATIVESIfyouusepastelsoftherighthardnessorsoftnesstoachievetheeffectyouwantonasurfacewithadequatetooth,there’snoneedforanyfixative.Whatyouputdownwillstaywhereyouwantit,anditwilllookthewayyouwantittolook.

ASelectionofMediumsandVarnishesInthestudioIuseonlyGamsolbyGamblin.Fast-drymediumslikeLiquin

andGalkydLiteworkwellfortraveling(tohelpdrypaintingsquickly)andforstudio glazes. Follow themanufacturer’s recommendations for oil and acrylicvarnish.Onanewoilpainting,useretouchvarnishtoallowtheoilpainttimetocureproperly.Onceit’sfullycured,useafinishvarnish.

StudioSetup

My studio is a converted two-car garage attached tomy home.Where thegaragedoorwasIinstalledslidingglassdoors.Wheneverpossible,usefurnitureand equipment that’s on rollers soyou can change the arrangementdependingupontherequirementsofeachproject.

ConvertedGarageYou can see where I’ve placed my easel for the best viewing. I’m left-

handed,sothewindowwallistotherightandwillnotcastashadowofmyhandonto the painting as Iwork.To the rear left is a sink,which is invaluable forwashingbrushesandworkingwithvariouswatermedia.The wall behind my easel is painted a neutral gray. This color will not

competewiththecolorsofmywork.Awhitewallwoulddistortthecolorsandtheirvaluerelationships.

ImportantWorkTableAcrossthestudiofrommyeaselisthemostvaluablepieceoffurniturethatI

have—amakeshiftworktable.Itwasmadebyplacingtwoadjustableshelvingunits back to back for large flat storage and a smaller shelf in the front forframingandpackingsupplies.Iusethis40"×60"(102cm×152cm)worksurfaceforframing,varnishing,

cuttingboards,mountingcanvas,packingandanythingelse that requiresa flatworksurface.Sincespaceislimitedinmystudio,itispurelyfunctional.WhenIdohavethe

occasionalclientvisit,heseemstolikevisitingtheworkspace.Themechanic’stoolchesttotheleftholdsallmyoilandacrylicpainttubes.

The space to the right rear iswhere I store and edit photography.Sincegoingmostlyalldigitalafewyearsago,thisspaceislittleusedanymore.

PalettePositionMypaletteisusedundertheeaselratherthantheside.ThisisasystemthatI

havebecomeused toworkingwithon location and adopted to the studio.Forcanvaseslargerthan48"×60"(122cm×152cm),Isimplyrollthetaborettothesidetowork.DirectlyoverheadIhaveacolor-balancedfluorescentlightfixture.Whenworkingwithphotosourcematerial,Iuseacomputerimageonalarge

flat-panelmonitorsetatasimilareyeleveltothecanvas,muchasitwouldbeonlocation.

MaterialsforWorkingonLocation

Whenworkingonlocation(enpleinair),themostefficientsetupforthewayyou travel andwork is imperative.Focuson thepainting at hand.All of yourtools and equipmentneed to aidyourprocess andnot be a distraction.Unlessyouwork directly from the back of your vehicle,weight and organization areyourmainconcernsthatwillallowyoutofocusonpainting.

CompactBackpackHere’s everything I need to go on location for several paintings. The

backpackisverycompactandholdsan11"×14"(28cm×36cm)pochadebox,11" × 14" (28cm × 36cm) panel storage box with four panels back to back,plasticboxwithpaintsandbrushes,foldingpockettool,papertowelsandtrashbag,solventcontainer,wetwipesforcleanup,sunscreenandbugspray,penandsketchbook,tripodandwaterbottle.Fully loaded, the backpack weighs around 15–20 lbs. (32–42 gsm). If you

wanttoreducethesizeandweight,thebestwayistopaintsmaller.Forexample,ifI’mhikinganydistance,thelargestsizeItakeis8"×10"(20cm×25cm),andIcarryamorelightweighttripod.

PochadeBoxesFor small on-locationwork, I prefer the pochade boxes thatmount onto a

cameratripod.Theyarecompact,easytosetupandefficient.Picturedhereareseveralbrands.Ilikeeachofthemfordifferentreasons.Ifyou’renotsurewhattobuy,thebestadviceIcangiveyouistoborrowone

and take it to a plein air painting workshop. Once there, see what others areusingandevaluate theusefulnessofeachone, thinkingabouthowitwould fityourneeds.Shortofthatyou’llenduplikeme,owningpracticallyoneofeverysizeandstylemade.Ihavemanymorethanarepicturedhere.

PaintingRigThisismytypicalenpleinairpaintingrig.Iuseaplasticfishingtacklebox

tostoremypaints,brushes,paletteknivesandmiscellaneousclipsandhooks.

MORNINGSNOWOilonlinenpanel18"×24"(46cm×61cm)

2ThePainterlyApproach

Looking at the world in a painterly way is key to bringing a natural andemotionalfeelingtoyourpaintings.WhenIcreateapainting,Idon’twanttomakeanillustrationofthesubject.

Instead,Istrivetomakeapaintingthatviewerswillrespondtoemotionally.Toenable them to feel the sun,windand tonalities I experience, Iuseapainterlyapproach.

TheLinearApproach

Thepainterlyartiststartsfromapositionofabstractrelationshipswhilethelinear artist starts from one of accuracy of subject. As I said earlier, both thelinearartistandthepainterlyartisthaveequallyvalidapproachestomakingtheirart.Oneisnota“finer”fineartistthantheother.Theyjusthavedifferentwaysof seeing the world, different goals for their art and different ways ofrepresenting it. At one extremewe have the photorealist and at the other theabstractexpressionist.Mostofus fall somewhere inbetween.Shouldyou takethelinearapproachorthepainterlymassapproach?Youdecidewhatsuitsyourdesireandtemperamentbest,butyoualsoneedtobeawareoftheoptions.Thelinearartistusesalineasatool,tostresstheboundariesbetweenobjects

and the separationof subject, background anddetail.Objects aredefinedwithlinesthatoutlineaformorsuggesttheedgeofasurfaceorplane,usingaccuratedrawingrightfromthestart.Theobjectsinthelinearartist’spaintingslooklikewhattheyare.Theviewerperceivesthemasisolatedandindependentunits.Thelinearartist’sgoalistorenderalikenessofobjects.Thevalueofthework

lieslessinitsdecorativepotentialthaninhowaccuratelyitdepictsthesubject.To accomplish this goal, detail and how an object actually looks is stressed.Painting may seem almost mechanical; lines are filled in while trying not todisturb the accuratedrawing the artist labored to establish.However,bybeingafraidtodisturborchangeanaccuratestart,thelinearartistrunstheriskoftheworklookingcoldandmechanicallyproduced.

SketchtheSubjectThecanvasiswashedwithathinmixtureofYellowOchreandTerraRosa.

Next,thefaceisdrawnusingcharcoalandacleanragtowipeoutanderase.Allfeatures and proportions are carefullymeasured. The drawing is then sprayedwithretouchvarnishtosetthecharcoal.

AddthePaintBeingcarefultofollowthedrawing,featuresaremodeledinpaintwithcolor

and value. Notice how the original color wash serves as a good light valuemidtonetojudgethewarmandcoolofthefleshtones.

CompletetheWorkForme,thisisacoldandmechanicalwaytowork.Effective,yes,butIlike

topush aroundpaint and respond towhat it does asone stroke is placedontoanother. Themost fun forme in doing this paintingwas painting the sky and

backgroundtrees.

ThePainterlyApproach

WhenIbegantostudypaintingandattendworkshops,Itookseveralcoursesthatweretaughtbylinearartists.Atthetime,Ididn’tknowaboutthedifferentpainting approaches, andbecause I had ahard time in these classes, I thoughtsomething was wrong with me. That all changed when I realized that whatcomesnaturallytomeisthepainterlyapproach.Thepainterlyartist sees theworldasdynamic, asymmetrical, andperhapsa

little cockeyed.Mass rather than line is used as a tool to stress pattern, “lost”edges,shapesandmasses,andthemergingofsubjectandbackground.Anobjectisdefinedasplanesofcolorandvaluethatrepresentitsformasitrelatestootherforms. Objects in paintings may look like what they are, but it’s OK if theydon’t. They aren’t as important to the final painting as the overall effect. Theviewer sees the painting as an artwork of unity and relative clarity withemotionalimpactfromitsgesture,notitssubject.Thepainterlyartist’sgoalistoexpressanemotionand,inmycase,afeeling

foratimeandplaceormood.Toaccomplishthisgoal,thepainterlypainteronlysuggests detail rather than focuses on it, and emphasizes large, simple shapesand the relationships between them. The elements of color and value and thepatterns they make are played up, adding progressively smaller and smallershapesasthepaintingisrefined.Thesesmallershapescreatetheimpressionofdetail in theviewer’smind,but the subject isneverdrawn; thepainterlyartistmerelycreatesmarksthatsuggestit.

DefinetheShapesThroughValueUsing a no. 6 filbert and a no. 10 flat, rough in themain shapes, defining

thembyvalue.Trytomaketheshapesgenerallycorrect,butdon’tworryabouttheexactnessofthedrawing.

RefinetoYourTastesThefinishedpaintingusingthepainterlyapproachisnotquiteasrefinedas

theoneusingthedrawingapproach,butitcouldbeifyouwantedit tobe.Formy tastes this was carried far enough. It captures a feeling of the time andsubject.Muchoftheexpressivegesturesofthepaintingprocessareevident,butnotsomuchastobecomeadistraction.Idefineeachfeaturebyaseriesofstrokesofpaint,notbydrawingcontours

withthebrush.

BESELECTIVEWHENCHOOSINGAWORKSHOPIftheartist’sworklookslikeatypeyouwouldliketocreate,youwillprobablyenjoy learningherapproach. If,on theotherhand,you just think that she is agoodartist,it’sprobablynotagoodideatostudywithher.Byallmeansdon’tgotoaworkshopjusttoaccompanyafriend.Thewronginstructioncouldputyouofftrackformonths.

DrawingandthePainterlyApproach

Now,let’stalkaboutdrawingasitrelatestothepainterlyapproach.WhenIsaidearlierthatmygoalisn’ttocreateanaccuraterendering,Ididn’tmeanthatdrawingisn’timportant,becauseitis.Tocreateagoodpaintingyouhavetobeable to draw, and drawing on its own is art. Painting and drawing areinseparable. You’ll use drawing in every step of the painting process, fromlayingoutthecompositiontoplacingthefinalaccentsofcolor.When I paint, I want the viewer to be able to identify my subject, so my

drawinghastobeaccurate.However,theprinciplesIapplycomefromtherealmoftheabstract,fromviewingmysubjectasshape,colorandedgesratherthanaslineanddetail.So,inthiscontextdrawingdoesn’tmeanputtinglinesaroundoneobject todistinguish it fromanother; itmeansmeasuringshapesandareasandcarefullykeepingtheirrelationshipscorrect.Italsomeansplacingastrokewhereyouwantitandinthesize,contouranddirectionyouintend.Ifyougetall theshapesandtheirrelationshipsright,theywillendupwithapatternofcolorandvaluethatnotonlyevokesemotionbutlookslikethesubjectwithoutdrawingasingleline.Sohowcanyouusedrawinginyourownpainting?Beforeyouput thefirst

markdownonyourcanvas, lookatyoursceneandstudy theshapes.Evaluatetheseareas:

Angles.Whatistheangleofthisshape’sedge,andhowdoesitrelatetotheangleofthiswindowortreelineorroad?

Size.Howbigisthisshape,andisitlargerorsmaller,morecurvedormoreangularthantheotherones?

Relationships.What is the color temperature andwhere is the black andwhitevalueofeacharea?Howdefinedaretheedgesoftheshapes?

Makeanefforttopaintwhatyousee,notwhatyouknow.Don’tpaintatreeacertainway because you know that it is a pine tree.As soon as you begin tothinkofathingforwhatitis,youbegintopaintwhatyouknowofthatthingandto lose sight of its relationship to other objects.You begin to draw edges andborders. Instead,paint that treeasacertainshapeofacertaincolorandvalue,and,aboveall,relateittotheothershapesinyourscene.Tohelpyoufindtheserelationships,herearesomestepsyoucantake:• Find your horizon line. To do this, hold your brush at arm’s length,horizontallyandlevelwithyoureyes.Thebrushautomaticallymarksthe

horizonline.•Observehowallthepartsofthescenerelatetoyourbrush.Youwillseequickly how much the side of the mountain or the edge of the riverslopes.

•Sketchthehorizonlineabitaboveorbelowthemiddleofyourpaintingsurface.

• Begin laying the shapes as you see them in relationship to the horizonline.Asyoulayinthemasses,frequentlycheckyourwork.Usethetipofthebrushagain,heldatarm’slength,tocompareandmeasureshapes.

•Transferthesesizerelationshipstoyourpainting.(Ifyoutakeyourtimeinmaking these relationships accurate, you won’t have to correct yourproportionssomuchlater.Also,yourpaintingwillfeelmoreauthentictoyoursubject,whetheritisalandscape,stilllifeorfigure.)

PaintingonLocationSuggestmasseswithoutusingacriticallydefinedcontourdrawing.

PerspectiveYoudon’thave tounderstandperspective todrawwell,but itdoesn’thurt.

Youdo,however,needtolearntoseeshaperelationshipsaccurately.

WHITEHOUSE


As you lay in your subject, focus on its essential characteristics— shape,contour,color,valueanditsrelationshiptoothershapes—notonitsdetails.Keeptheedgesofthemassessoftsotheycanmoreeasilybepushedandpulledastheworkevolves.Now that you have placed the subject in the painting, ask yourself if the

compositionworks.Concernyourselfwith theoveralldesignofyourpainting,nottheillustrativedetailsofthesubject.Thisisthepainterlyapproach.

Ofcourse,thistakespractice.Themoreyoupaint,thebetteryouwillbeabletodraw,and thebetteryouwillbeable toseeandexecuteeveryaspectof thepainting,fromcomposingtousingcolorandvalueinapleasingway.Ithasbeensaid that you have to paintmiles of canvas before you’re any good at it. I’vefoundthistobetrue.Iliketothinkthateveryyearmyworkandskillsgetbetter,andI’mwellpasta thousandmiles. Ifweeverstopgrowingand learning,ourworkstagnates.

SuggestObjectsInsteadofDrawingThemRatherthandrawingtheobjectsofascene,trylayinginlargeabstractshapes

of color and value, progressively modifying them until you have a painterlysuggestionofdetail.

STANDINGTALL

Oilonlinenpanel,12"×6"(30cm×15cm)

Asafinalwordondrawing,letmesaythatlineisnotonlyatechniqueofthedraftsmanbutcanbeusedveryeffectivelybythepainterlypainter.TheAbstractExpressionists of the mid-twentieth century used line as a form of gesture to

express movement and emotion. Paul Cézanne used line to flatten the three-dimensional illusion of traditional, illustrative scene painting and to separateshapes. Line is just another tool in your toolbox, and, if it will help youaccomplishyourgoal,thenfeelfreetouseit.

ThePainterlyApproachtoFigurePainting

Oneofthebeautiesofpainterlyworksisthepushandpullthatoccursasthepainting isdevelopedand the shapesaremodifiedand refined.Startingwithatight,exactdrawingcanbeconfiningandresultsinstiff,unemotionalpaintings.Itworksforsomeartists,butformethepainterlyapproachisbest.

THEPAINTERLYARTISTThepainterlyartistdoesnotdrawthesubject,butcreatesshapesandmarksthatsuggestit.

LayintheFigureStudyFollowing a preliminary drawing in my sketchbook, I laid in this figure

study.Thoughthemodel’sheadislocatedintheideallocationforthecenterofinterest, I found it boring and ordinary, so I scraped off the paint and startedagain. If this were started as a very exact and time-consuming drawing, theemotional aspects of thedesignof color andvaluemassesmaynot havebeenrealizeduntilaftermuchwork.

WorkOuttheDesign,ColorandValueThesecondlay-inshiftsthemodelfarthertotheleftandshelooksoutofthe

canvas, something that proper design tells us not to do, though I found thetension exciting. The use of painterly brushwork and value pulls the viewer’sattentionbacktotherightwithvisualinterest.Themajorshapeshavebeenpainted in theiraveragecolorsandvalueswith

thinwashes.Theyaregenerallycorrect,butnotexact.

DirecttheViewerThe viewer looks at themodel’s face first, then visually travels down her

bright redshirt toherhandsurroundedbydark.Fromtherehe isdrawnto therightalong the leg in light to the light footagainstdark.Next,he looks to theupper right because of the bright color and gesture strokes of light valuecontrasts,andfollowsthetopofthesofabacktothemodel’sface.Youareincontroloftheseelementswhenyoupaint.Ifthemodel’sfootwere

painted in shadowor theedgesofher armwere too sharplydefinedand therewere not the splashes of light value and bright color to the right, the viewer

wouldfollowthemodel’sgazerightoutofthesceneandthepicturewouldfail.Manipulatingedges,colorandvalueasyoustrengthenthedesignandemotionalqualitiesiskeytothepainterlyapproach.Don’tcopythescene,orchestrateit!

OILDEMONSTRATION

CarefullySuggestingDetails

Whether you are drawing or using the painterly approach, locating thehorizon line and the orientation of angles such as rooflines is crucial to thesuggestionof the subject. It’s alsonecessary tocarefullyevaluate theneed forsuggested details, or their elimination, to balance the visually decorativequalitiesofthepainting.Thisisaverysubjectivebalancethatthepainterlyartistneedstopractice.Don’tbetimidaboutaddingorsubtractingsuggesteddetailstoenhancetheoverallwork.

Letthepaintingspeaktoyouanddon’tbecontrolledbywhatisinfrontofyou.

Materials

OILPALETTE

CadmiumYellowLight•MonoOrange•BurntSienna•PeryleneRed•UltramarineDeepBlue•Viridian•Titanium-ZincWhite

BRUSHES

No.6hogbristleflat•no.2hogbristleextralongfilbert

SURFACE

Oil-primedlinenonboard

OTHER

1-inch(25mm)paintingknife•mineralspirits

1FindtheHorizonBeforestartingapaintingit’sagoodideatolocatethehorizonandtransferthattoyourcanvas.Holdingthebrushlevelwithyoureyesandatarm’slengthwillshowthehorizonline.

2RelatetheShapestotheHorizonLocate the horizon on the canvas. Establish this reference to get the shapeplacementyouintendforthescene,andrelateallshapestoit.

REFRESHYOURSKILLSBYTRYINGSOMETHINGNEWI paint mostly landscapes (and teach landscape painting), but I also attend aweekly figure painting group and paint figurative work from time to time topracticewithvarioussubjects.Itkeepsmymindandskillsfresh.Mostartistsnotonlywork inmore thanonemedium,but also inmore thanone subject. It’s agoodidea,asitkeepsyoubalancedasapainter.

3ChecktheAnglesTheangleoftheroofwasimportanttome,soIfounditusingthehandleofthebrushandtransferredittothepainting.

4ChecktheEdgesBecarefulnottochangetheangleofyourhandasyoumovethebrushhandledowntothepaintingandchecktherooflineyouhavelaidout.Sincethepeakoftheroofisthemostdynamicedgeinthescene,makesureit’scorrectinrelationtotheotherelements.

5CompareSizeRelationshipsUse theendof thebrushhandleandyour thumbtomeasure importantshapes,thencomparethatmeasurementtootherelementssuchasthelengthoftheroof.Learntomeasureandcomparethesizerelationshipswithinascene.

6RoughinColorsAfterfindingthesizeandplacementofthemainshapes,roughinthemassesofcolor.

7EvaluateforInterestWhenthepaintingwasfinished,Ithoughttheforegroundgrasseswereplainandalittleboring.

8CompletethePaintingIaddedthesuggestionofspringwildflowersforamoreinterestingfieldandtointroducecolorsIusedintheupperpartofthepainting.

HOMECOUNTRY


ThePoetryofPainting

Once you’ve roughed in your subject and you’re satisfied that yourrelationshipsarecorrect,whatnext?First,stopsketching!Ifyougettoohungupondetailandtheexactnessofthe

sketch,yourpaintingwillbecomeboringbecauseittellstoomuch.Theviewerdoesn’tneedto lookat itagainbecause it revealedall ithadtosay in thefirstglance.Remember,thegoal—andthechallenge—istocommunicateasenseoftimeandplaceandtoevokeemotionthroughtheabstractionsofcolorandvaluealone.Leaveituptotheviewertoaddthebeautyofdetailtoyourpainting.ThisiswhatIcallthe“poetryofpainting.”Another aspect of painterly painting can be found in the work of the

Impressionists. Because light is the only thing that stimulates the eye, theseartists sought topaint not thingsbut the light reflectingoff them. If youpaintwiththisideainmind,youwillfindyourselfautomaticallypaintingshapesandrelationships,notlinesandobjects.Cézanne took this a step further. He painted three-dimensional objects as

simpleplaneswithcertainrelationshipstooneanother.Thiskindofabstractionremovesobjects fromanydepictionof realityanddealswithelementsaspureformrelatedtoform.Hisapproach“flattens”thelandscape(orfigureorstilllife)intoapatternofshapesofcolorandvalue.Youcandothesamebysquintingatthescenebeforeyou.Squintingreducestheamountoflightenteringtheeye,soitbothflattensandsimplifiesthesceneintoafewsimpleshapes.Orchestratethepainting.Theeyeisdrawntoedgesandcontrasts,socontrol

them to involve the viewer in the work and give them room to use theirimagination.Thisisthepoetryofpainting.Paintingeverydetailislikewritingatechnicalmanual.Itmaybedoneverywell,butitisnotemotionallystimulatingforyouortheviewer.Finally, pay attention to how you actually apply paint to canvas. Painterly

painting requires texture and brushwork. Don’t strive for the smooth “finish”that the nineteenth-century FrenchAcademy artists believedwas necessary tobringapaintingtocompletion.Yes,applyyourbrushstrokespreciselyandwithcontrol,but,onceyouputthemdown,thickorthin,roughorsmooth,letthembeunlessitistosoftenanedgeorsurface-mixthecolors.Asyouwork,varyyourpaintfromthin,transparentdarksintheearlystages

toopaqueandthickerstrokesinthelaterstages.Don’tbeafraidtoscrapeback

anareawith thepaletteknifeandpaint itagain.Thegestureofyourstrokes iscrucialtothesuccessofapainterlywork.Don’tblendawayyourbrushstrokes.Blendingmaymakethepaintinglookmorephotographic,butitremovesamajorelement of your expression andmuddies the color. Brushstrokes can be—andshouldbe—asdistinctiveasyourownhandwriting.Beproudofyourbrushworkandletitshow!

PaintTextureandDepthDepth is conveyed with thick and thin paint textures. In the distance, all

edgesaresoftandthepaintlayersarethincomparedtothesunlitgrassesinthemiddle ground. Much can be communicated about a subject through thevariationsofbrushworkandtexturewhilekeepingvaluecontrastssimilar.

BLUEVISTA


EmphasizeLightPainterlypaintingmakesuseofthickandthinpainttoexpressthegestureof

the artist and emphasize the variations between thin, transparent shadows andthick, opaque lights, as in the sunlit sand on the slope of the dunes in thispainting.Youcanseethereflectedlightonthebankintheshadowasachangeincolor temperaturemore thanachange invalue.Toomuchvaluechangewouldmaketheshadowshapebusy.

DUNE


ANEXPERIMENTINSEEINGFindsomethingintheroomthatinterestsyou,say,avaseofflowers,yourcoffee

cuporaglassofwine.Letyoureyerestonitwithoutmoving.Youreyewillseethedetailofthevaseandflowers—thesharpedgesofpetalandstem,thesharpedgeof thevase.Now,whileyoureye is still restingon thevase, try to sensewhat liesbeyond it.Yousense the table,perhapsachairbehind it,butallyoucanreallyseeisthegeneralshape,notthedetails.Highlightsareblurred,edgessoft.Thisishowthepainterlyartistseesandpaints.

BalanceColorsTherhythmofspacingandtheslantofthetreetrunkskeeptheviewerinthe

painting.Theoutsidesofthetreesareleanedintothepainting.Thebackground,althoughfulloftextureandcolor,recedesbehindthetreesofthemiddlegroundbecausethereislessvaluechange,smootherandthinnerpaintandgrayedcolorcomparedtothetreesintheforeground.The thick,opaque texturesandbrushwork in the lightareascomplement the

lessaggressivecolorandtextureoftheshadowsanddistance.Even thoughwedon’t seemuchsky,weunderstand that it is aclear,bright

daybecauseof the sharpnessofedgesandcontrastbetween lightand shadow.Also,alotofblueskyisreflectedintotheflatplaneoftheshadows.Thetreesarewarmerclosertothegroundandcoolastheygrowtothesky.Thishappenswithall trees,but it ismoreevidentherebecause the light trunksof theaspentreesreflectsomuchcolor.

SUMMERASPEN


EARLYSNOWOilonlinenpanel24"×30"(61cm×76cm)

3FundamentalsofthePainterlyApproach

Agoodpaintingdrawsusin,leadsusonajourneyandfillsuswithemotionand thought. The fundamentals of constructing a painting are the tools of theartist’s trade.The skillwithwhichyouuse them impactsyour finishedworks.Youmust learn and fully understand these fundamentals so that they becomesecondnaturewhenyou’recreatingapainterlypainting.Thebasicfundamentalsare relatively simple on the surface, but you can spendmany years perfectingthem and pursuing their finer points. For a work of art to be consideredsuccessful,theviewermustnotevenbeawareofanyofthesefundamentals.Thefinishedworkstandscomplete.

Composition

Compositionisoneofthemostimportantelementsofasuccessfulpainting,especiallywhenusingthepainterlyapproach.Everypaintinghasacomposition,goodorbad.Assoonasyouplaceamarkonablanksurface,youhavesetuparelationshipofsize,shape,placement,directionandvalue.Inmyopinion,compositionisthemajorproblemofmostworksthatfail,yet

few people recognize this.Whenever I visit a non-professional exhibition, thenumber one problem I see is composition. The artists seem to be focused somuchoncoloranddrawingthattheyforgetthestructureoftheirpictures.Therearemanyprinciplesandformulasforgoodcomposition,butthebiggest

trapmostartistsfall intois that theyinterpret theseprinciplesasrules,andtheformulasasarequirementforpainting.IfIhaven’tmadeitclearalready,letmemake it absolutely clear now:There areno rules—just principles.Whenused,these principles work, but they are not always the best solutions for yourinterpretation of a particular scene. And there are definitely no formulas tofollowunlessyouaretryingtofollowaparticularschoolofOldMasters.It’sagoodideatounderstandtheformulasusedbytheOldMasters,butthese

shouldbeusedastoolstohelpyouexpressyourideasaboutascene,notasthebasis of how you portray it. Focus on learning the basic principles of goodcomposition. Use the principles to guide you in your interpretation or to getyourself out of trouble, but don’t become a slave to them. Some of themostexcitingworksIseeareinviolationofthe“rules.”Butthepaintingswork.(Notalways,butwhentheydo,itisexcitingtosee.)Agoodcomposition is apleasingarrangementof shapes,valuesandcolors.

Anything that aids this arrangement is useful, and brushwork, colors, values,texturesandbusyshapepatternsthatdonotaiditshouldbeeliminated.Askyourself,“WhatdoIfindmostinterestingaboutthisscene?Wherewould

that look best placedwithin this canvas?What size should it be? HowmuchspacewouldenhancewhatIfindinteresting?HowimportantarethesurroundingelementstothisareaandhowmuchofthemshouldIinclude?Whatshapeandorientation should the canvas be to enhancemy ideas of this subject?”All ofthesequestionswillhelpyouestablishagoodshaperelationship.

Referencephoto

Study

StudyBasedonthePhotographWhenyou lookatascene, try tobreak itdownintonomore thansixoreightshapes—fewer ifyoucan.Theseshapesaredefinedbycolor (dullor intense,warmorcool)andbyvalue.Trytolimittheseshapestoonlyfourorfivevalues(seeValueIs“Key”-Four-ValueApproach toPainterlyPainting).Youmayendupwithtwoshapesthatarethesamevalue,buttheywillbeseparatedbycolor.Useasmallsketchbookandpentopracticeseeingtheseshapes.

Other importantquestions to considerbeforemaking the firstmark include:Whatareyoutryingtodowiththissubject?Areyoudocumentingthesceneasitappearsorareyoucreativelyinterpretingittoexpressaparticularfeeling?Ioftenapproachartistsinworkshopsandaskthemwhyatree,rockorother

objectisplacedwhereitisintheirpaintingandwhyitispaintedwithsomuchimportance.Theoverwhelmingresponseis,“Becauseit’sthere.”Ifanobjectisnotthereasonyou’redoingthepainting,thenithasnobusinessbeingthere.

Referencephoto

Study

StudiesBasedonPhotographsIn these studies, see how the shapes and values of the photographs were

simplified to create a dynamic organization using four basic value groups andwarmandcoolcolors.Thecontrastofwarmandcoolcolorsandvalues is thestrengthofthesescenes,soitisimportantthatthestructureisnotlostascolor,brushwork and details are added. The challenge is to maintain the dynamicsimplicityofasmallstudyinalargework.

Referencephoto

Balance

Good composition is about balance: balance of shapes (positive andnegative,largeandsmall),values(dark,midandlight),colorharmony,intensity,dominanceofwarmorcoolhues,andinformation(howlittleorhowmuch).Studytheworksofotherartiststoseehowtheyhandledwhatmayappearto

beabusyordetailedscene.AndrewWyethisamasterofsimplifyingshapesandorganizingtheirpatterntoenhancethemoodandhisidea.Mostpeoplerespondtothedetailofhisworksandthinkthatthedrawingiswhattheyareallabout.It’stheeffectiveuseofabstractshapes,colorandvaluethatmakehispaintingsso compelling. Many other artists are more technically accurate; it is theunderlying structure of Wyeth’s paintings that makes them so effective. Hisfather,N.C.Wyeth,acommercialillustrator,wasalsoamasteratusingshapestocomposeandcapturehis idea for the scene. I recommend thatyou study theirworks and those of other artists with this concept inmind. The impressionistwestern and landscape paintings of James Reynolds are particularly worthstudyingtoseetheeffectivenessofgoodshape,valueandcolorindesign.

CompositionChoicesTheseeminglysimpleprocessofselectingthepaperorcanvasgreatlyaffects

what you say about the subject. Should it be a vertical, horizontal, square orpanorama?Allareviableoptions foryou toconsider,and thechoiceofwhichonetousewillhaveadramaticeffectontheideayouaretryingtoconveyandthewayyouwillbalancetheobjectwithinthepainting.

PlacingtheCenterofInterest

There are principles and guidelines for achieving good balance within apainting,butit’sgoodtorememberthattheseareprinciplesthatwork,notrulesthat you have to follow. Personal expression and balance of the elements arewhatmattermost.The biggest problem with placing a center of interest in the middle of the

paintingisnotnecessarilyitslocation,butratherthebalanceoftheothershapes.If you create an effective relationship, there is no reason that the center ofinterestcan’tbeinthemiddleofthecanvas.However,ifyoucenterelementsona regular basis and thenhave a hard timemaking thewhole paintingbalance,youriskmakingallofyourworkvignettes.Irecommendgettingintothehabitoffindingabetterlocationatthestart.Thereareseveralformulasandmethodsforlocatingthecenterofinterest.The

goldensectionandtheruleofthirdsarethemostcommonandtime-tested.Tofindthegoldensectionofyourpaintingsurface,dividethehorizontaland

thentheverticaldimensionby2.62anddrawahorizontaloraverticallinefromeach point. This will give you the ideal center of interest location for thatparticularsize.Or, simply divide your painting surface into thirds, and any one of the

intersectingpointsisagoodlocationforthecenterofinterest.WhenstartingapaintingwhereIdon’twantthemostdynamicplaceinmycompositiontobeinthecenter,Isimplymarkoffthethirdsandplacethemostdynamicinformationclosetooneoftheintersectingpoints.

Don’tCenterEverythingGoodbalanceinapaintingdoesnotmeancenteringofalltheelements.This

isboringandcreatesuninterestingnegativespace.

CreateVisualWeightFinding the balance of various objects by how their weights counter one

another is most visually interesting and creates interesting negative shapes.Balancebyvisualweight,notbycenteringelements.

TheRuleofThirdsDivide the surface horizontally and vertically by thirds. The resulting four

intersectingpointsareeachagoodchoiceforlocatingyourcenterofinterest.It’sup toyou tochoose theone thatworksbest foryour scene. Ifyouarehavingtroubleplacingyourcenterofinterest,startingthiswaywillsolvetheproblem.This simple approachworks for any format. I do this with a brush and paintbeforestartingtolayouttheshapes.

KeeptheViewerInterested

Accents in a painterly painting can be as simple as direct or bold strokes.These strokes are focal points that attract the viewer’s eye by theircharacteristics. Use these accents to create a path of either light or dark thatguidetheviewer’seyesintoandaroundyourpainting,leadingthemtothecenterofinterest.Ifyouareattractingattentionwhereyoudon’twantit,simplysoftentheedges,valuesorcolorsandmake themmoredynamicwhereyouwant theviewer to look. This is one of themost important concepts of composition—creatingavisualpath,notjustcopyingelementsofyoursubjectbecausetheyarethere.One of the keys of painterly painting is attracting the viewer to strokes of

color,valueandedges thatmayhavenootherpurpose than tomake theworkmore dynamic. This truly separates the drawer and the painter. The drawercontrolstheviewbytherepresentationofdetail;thepaintercontrolstheviewbymanipulatingpaint,withorwithoutanyrelationshiptoreality,butratherwithaconcernforgoodcompositionandvisualflow.

OrchestratetheWork’sVisualFlowMassesandaccentsareusedtodirectthevisualflowwithinawork.Lookfor

opportunitiestolinkshapesofdarkorlighttoorganizeandsimplifythenumberofindividualspotsintoasimplerdesign.It’seasytoaddcomplexity,sostartassimplyasyoucan.Here the lightsvisuallyguide theviewer’seye through the

painting. The values of the large, dark mass are close to have one large,dominant dark shape.Toomanyvalue changeswithin the shapeswouldmakethepaintingbusy.

CANYONREFLECTIONS


SketchbooksIt’sagoodideatoalwayshaveasmallsketchbookwithyousothatyoucan

sketchoutcompositionalideas,makenotesorjustenjoydoingasimplesketchwhen there isnot enough timeor it’snot convenient topaint. I almost alwayscarryapen,butyoumaypreferapencil.Ifyou’renotsurehowtoorganizetheshapesorcreatevisualflowwithinascene,doasmallblack-and-whitesketch.Thiswillquicklyshowtherelationshipofthemassesandhowyoumayneedtoalterthemtomakethepaintingworkvisually.It’saloteasiertochangeafive-minutesketchthanapainting.

Don’tOverdoItPaintings with large, simple shapes that form a pleasing arrangement of

positiveandnegativespacestendtobethemostvisuallyinteresting,regardlessofthesubject.Thehardestthingformetodoistoleaveaworksimpleandresistthe temptation toclutter itwithunnecessarystrokes,value,coloranddrawing.Ask yourself what’s really important and leave it at that, doing only what’snecessary to state the idea. Here I kept the barn siding simple so that visualinterestwouldbeonthebarn’scolorandshapeasitrelatedtothesurroundinghues andnot thebuilding’s texture.Thatwouldhavebeen adifferentpaintingidea and the entire picture would have been handled differently to play uptexturevariationsratherthanshapeandcolor.

AMICHIGANREDBARN

Pastelonwhitesandedpastelpaper12"×16"(30cm×41cm)

ValueIs“Key”

Thetermvaluerelatestothelightanddarkwithinasubject.Remember,allcolorhasvalue.IusedtothinkthatIunderstoodtheuseofvaluebecauseIknewhowtogivesubjectsformbypaintingdarkandlight.OnceIstartedtosimplifyandpaintthenuancesofvalue,however,thisseeminglysimpletoolbecameverycomplex.ItisanaspectIfocusoneverytimeIpaint.Idon’tmeantoscareyou,because it is exciting. Every scene provides a new set of relationships to beconsidered and experimented with. So, learn the basics, then have funcontrollingandexperimentingwiththemanyaspectsofvalue.Mostpainterslimittheirworkingvaluestonine—fourinthelightrange,four

inthedarkrangeandoneinthemiddle.Morethanthatistoohardtomanage,and it is better to simplify this range. Compared to nature, these nine are notmany,butasartistswearetryingtorepresenttheeffectsoflight,notcopyit.

ALIMITEDVALUERANGEEXPERIMENTAgoodexperimentandpracticeforthissimplevalueconceptistomixaseriesofwarmcolorsinallfourvaluegroups,andthenmixaseriesofcoolhuesinamatchinggroupofvalues.Using theseeightcolors,paint the landscape.Don’tmixnewhuesasyouwork.Forceyourselftoplacepartsofthesceneintooneofthesewarmorcoolvalues.Youwillquicklyseehoweffectivethelimitedvaluerangeisincreatingadynamicpainting.

AllColorHasValueLearning to see the black and white characteristics of color is crucial to

understandingthestructureofyourwork.

TraditionalValueScaleAsanexercise,makeyourownvaluescale.Anine-valuescaleiseffective.If

you try tocreatemorevalues than that, thechangesbecomeawkwardand tooclose.Thisscalewascreatedbysimplymixingblackandwhiteoilpaints.

ExperimentinYourSketchbookKeepasketchbookclosesoyoucandovaluestudies.Wheneveryoustruggle

withtheorganizationofthescene,makeafewquicksketcheswithpen,pencilormarker.

KEEPVALUESCALESHANDYOnce you’ve made a few value scales, keep them nearby and use them toevaluateyourpaintingsandcomparecolormixtures.Placetheminaplasticbagand lay a colormixture directly on top of the value to seewhere themixturefalls.

Four-ValueApproachtoPainterlyPainting

Back in the 1930s, John F. Carlson proposed that only four values werenecessary to interpret thecomplexityof the landscape.Heproposed theskyasthe source of light is the lightest value; the flat plane of the land that catcheslightmostdirectly is thesecond lightestvalue; theslantedhillsandmountainsthatcatchlightatanangleareadarkmiddlevalue;andtheuprightplanessuchasthetrunkofatreearethedarkest.Allthingsbeingrelativelyequal,thisfour-valuelandscapeconceptholdstrue

(thoughtherearealwaysexceptions,suchasalight,sandybeach,snoworlight-valuebuildings).Evenwiththeseexceptions,however,therelationshipofvalueplanes and source of light is the same. For example, a light sidewalk catchesmorelightthanthelightsideofalight-coloredbuildingandwouldbealightervalue.Also,adarkcastshadowonthegroundisfilledwiththereflectedlightoftheskyandisneverasdarkasanuprightshadow.KeepingtheCarlsonfour-valuelandscapeinmind,alwaystrytosimplifyyour

scenesintothesevalues—fivevaluegroupsatthemost.Therearemanywaystosimplify.Forexample,adistant treelinemayhavebothlightandshadow,but,forthestrengthofyourpainting,youneedtokeepthetreelinethesamevalue.Insteadofaddinganothervalue,representthelightandshadowbyusingwarmandcoolcolors,keepingtheirvaluesthesame.Limitingyourselftofourvaluesatthestartwillhelpyoucontrolyourpainting.

ASimplifiedValueScaleI try to simplifymywork into a four-valuegroup, but always save a little

roomforaverylightorverydarkaccent.Don’tuseyourmaximumrange;saveroomtoaddaccents ifneeded.Otherwiseyoumayfind itnecessary to repaintandreviseareastomakeyouraccentswork.

AFive-ValueGroupIsSometimesNecessaryWhile I try to limitmy painting concepts to four value groups, it is often

necessary to use five.Themoreyou can simplify your values, themore unityyourpaintingwillhave.Theprimarycauseofabusyworkistoomanyvalues.Simplify,simplify,simplifyandorganizethegroupingofthesevalues.

FOUR-VALUELANDSCAPEThe sky is the source of light and therefore the lightest valuemass. The flatplane of the ground catches light most directly and is the second (or light-middle)valuegroup.Slantedplanescatch lightataglancingdirectionandarethedark-middlevaluemass.Uprightssuchastreetrunkscatchtheleastlightandarethedarkestvaluegroup.Thereareexceptionstothisconcept,butyoumustalwaysbeawareofthisrelationship.

CreateValueStudies

Manygreatpaintingsthroughtheageshavebeencreatedusingaverylimitedvaluerange.Throughpractice,you’llfindthatthefour-orfive-valuescaleisallyouneedfordynamicyetsubtlepainting.Whetheryou’reinthestudiooronlocation,doingvaluestudieswillhelpyou

evaluate a scene, determine a value structure or discover if there is a goodpattern of light or dark. These studies greatly aid in determiningwhich valuegroupyouwanttoshiftanareatoforsimplicity.Itmaytakeseveralsketchesorstudiestoworkthisout,butyou’llfindtheeffortisworthit.Thethreeexamplesonthispageshowhowthefour-valueconceptisapplied

todifferentlandscapes.

ClassicFour-ValueStudyHere,theskyisthelightestvalueandtheuprighttreeisthedarkest.Thetree

lineisthedark-middlevalue,andthedistanthazymountainandthegrassyfieldarethelight-middlevalue.

SkyandLand,SameValueHere, thecloudsare the lightest; thenear tree lineuprightsare thedarkest.

The distant tree line is the dark-middle value and the field, the distant hazymountainandtheclearareaoftheskyarethelight-middlevalue.

LandandSky,LightestValueInthisvaluestudy,theuprighttreeis,again,thedarkestmasswhilethesky

and part of the ground are the lightest. The distant tree line is a dark-middlevalue.(Iwouldpaintthistreelinewithwarmandcoolcolorstoshowlightandshadow,making sure that the value remained the same according to the valueplan.)Partofthefieldandthedistantmountainsarethelight-middlevalue.

THE“VALUE”OFSQUINTINGWhenyousquint,areasandtexturesofsimilarvaluesmergeintosimplemassesofanaveragevalue.Bycomparingsimplemassesofdark,mediumandlightinyour scene, you’ll find an effective structure for your painting. Squinting alsoeliminatesunnecessarydetail informationandreveals themostdynamicedges,which are the ones youwant to paint. These stronger edges generally happenwherethereisastrongerchangeofvalue.

PaintingwithaValuePlanIs“Key”

Aspaintersworkingwithalimitedvaluerange,wemustforceourworkintoone of the three value keys: low, mid and high. One of these three needs todominate your painting, while the other two are subordinate. Whichever youchoose, don’t let the others sneak in and create conflict. Onemust dominate.Don’t confuse the value key. It is much more effective to slide and simplifyvalues to fit one of the three keys than to expand the value range you areworkingin.Simpleisbetter.

ACAUTIONABOUTACCENTSIfyouusetoomanyaccents,thescenewillbecomebusy.Iftheareaofaccentsistoolarge,yourisklosingyourintendedvaluekey.“Lessismore”applieswhenusingaccents.

Low-KeyValueDominanceIn this low-keypainting, themajorityofvaluesare from themiddle to the

darkendofthevaluescale.AlthoughIusedthedarkendofthescale,thereareaccentsthatfallatthelightestvalue.Everygoodpaintingcontainsafullrangeofvaluefromblacktowhiteeventhoughtheworkisdominatedbyoneofthethreevaluekeys.Thisscenecouldalsobedescribedasalargedarkwithsmalllight.

High-KeyValueDominanceInsceneslikethissnowsceneorawhite,sandyshore,wearepresentedwith

arangeofvaluethatisveryhigh-key,towardthewhiteendofthevaluerange.Aswiththelow-key,youneedtoletthekeythatyouareworkingindominate.Don’t add toomanydark-middlevalues,butmake sureyourpaintingcontainsaccentsofdarkthatrangeallthewaytothedarkestendofthevaluescale.

Mid-KeyValueDominanceMost of the sceneswe encounter fit into themiddle key.Aswith low-and

high-valuekeys,simplifyandlimitthevalues.Useaccentsofdarkandlightatboth ends of the value scale. You can see in the sample above that the lightflowersontheendoftheplantareawhiteaccentandthedark,shadowedtrunksoftheplantsareadarkaccent.

ValueandEdgesDescribeForm

Weall see areasof different valuewithin theoverallmass, butwhen littlethoughtisgiventowheretheedgesaresoft,wheretheytransitionfromdarktolight, andwhere they arehard and separate, themasswill be chaotic, flat andconfusingtolookat.Asapainter,it’simportanttolearnhowvalueandedgesareusedtodescribeform.

UseValuetoCreateThreeDimensionsIt takes threevalues to represent three-dimensional form.A formwith just

dark and light looks two-dimensional. You can create a transition with morevaluesbyblendingthedarkandlight togetherorbyaddinganothervaluewithpaint.

SoftentheEdgesTheedgeswithina formmustbe soft.Edges that separateone shape from

another can have a sharper edge and more dramatic contrast. Many timesstudentsseethreeorfourdifferentvaluesinanareasuchasatree,bushorgroupofrocks,andtheypaintstrokesofthesevalues,butdon’tunderstandorvisuallyexplaintotheviewerwhateachvaluebelongsto.Thismakesthepaintinglookbusyandconfusing.

CreateVisualUnderstandingHere you can see that by softening the edges of value changeswithin the

form, you start to have a visual understanding of how the value is used todescribeform.

RelatetheFormsNowyoucanseehowthevalueedgeshavebeensoftenedwithineachform.

Theonlyhardedgesaretheonesthathappennaturallybetweenobjects.Again,anytimeyouplaceastroke,askyourself,“Whatdoesitbelongto?Whatpartofwhatformisitdescribing?Shouldtheedgebehardorsoft?”

Color:TheEmotionofPaintingI’vehearditsaidthat“Valueandcompositiondotheworkandcolorgetsthe

credit.” For the most part, that is a true statement. Color is the emotion ofpainting.Whiletheemotionofapaintingiscriticaltothesuccessofthatwork,the fundamental elements of good design, value and execution are equally oreven more important. We all see color a little differently, but we all mustunderstand and use the same principles of color to find andmix the oneswewant.Youneedtolearntheconceptsofthecolorwheelsothatyoucanlookatany

color and identify where it would fall on the wheel and understand itsrelationshiptootherhues.Next,youmustlearnhowtomixthatcolorwiththehuesonyourpalette.It’s important to understand the basics so that when I discuss certain color

mixesandusesyouknowwhatImean.Beyondthebasicspresentedhere,colormixinganduseisamatterofpersonalpreference.Thecolorwheelismadeofprimary,secondaryandtertiarycolors.Eachhas

thepropertiesofhue,valueandintensity.•Huedescribes the color and where it belongs on the color wheel. Forexample, red-violetdescribesacolor that ison thevioletsectionof thewheelapproachingred.

•Valueistheblackorwhitequalityofthecolor.It’showdarkorlightitis.•Intensityisthedegreeofvibrancyahuehasandtowhatdegreeitmaybegrayedbyitscomplement.

•Primarycolorsarered,blueandyellowand,intheory,aretheonlyhueswecannotcreatefromamixture.

•Secondarycolorsareorange,violet andgreenandaremadebymixingtwoprimarycolors.

•Tertiarycolorsarecreatedbymixingaprimaryanda secondarycolor.Forinstance,red-orangeisamixtureofredandorange.

•Complementarycolorsarehuesthataredirectlyoppositeeachotheronthecolorwheel.Redisthecomplementofgreen,blueisthecomplementof orange, and yellow is the complement of violet. In theory, whencombined in equal amounts, they will produce a completely neutralgrayishcolormixture.Thisisespeciallytruewhenyoucombinethethreeprimaries. Thesemixtureswill lower the intensity of the hues you areusing.

MakeaColorWheelMake your own color wheel using Permanent Red Medium, Cadmium

YellowLightandCobaltBluefortheprimaries.Next,mixthesecondaryhuesoforange, violet and green from these primary colors, then blend the mixturestogethertotransitionaroundtheoutsideof thewheelandintothecenter.It’safunchallengetodoitwell.Keepyourbrushcleanoruseseveralbrushes.Itishelpfultolearnwherethecolorsofyourpalettearelocatedonthewheel.

Thiswill aid greatly in your understanding ofwhat happens (andwhy)whentheyaremixed.

ThreeUsesofColor

There are three ways to use color in contemporary painting: tonal,impressionisticandopen.

TonalBeforetheImpressionistsemergedinthemid-1800s,nearlyallpaintingwas

tonal. Artists were mainly concerned with depicting the dark, light and localcolorofasubject.Thisapproach isstillusedsuccessfully todayand illustrateshowimportantvalueandcompositionaretothecreationofawork.Tonalworkstendtorelyontheirmoodorrealismfortheirsuccess,whiletheimpressionisticandopen-colorapproachesdependstronglyontheemotionaleffectsofcolor.

ImpressionisticThe early Impressionists took their paints and canvases into the great

outdoors and studied the effects of light and atmosphere on the subject. TheImpressionists learnedhowyou can see the local color of an object in neutrallight,but,asthatobjectmovesintomoredirectlight,itscolorisaffectedbythelight’s temperature. Conversely, as the object moves into shadow, it loses thecolorofthelightsourceandisaffectedbyreflectedlight.They observed that typically there is a dominance of warm light and cool

shadow.However,when reflected, light creates verywarm shadowswhile thelight lookscool.Asartistswepaintwarmlightandcoolshadowsorcool lightwithwarmshadows.That’snottosaythatanelementofeachcan’texistinbothscenarios,butthereshouldbeacleardominanceofwarmlightandcoolshadoworcoollightandwarmshadow.

LocalColorLocal color is the natural color of an object when viewed in flat, neutral

light.Assoonasyouseeshiftsinthetemperatureoflight,orthereflectedcolorsofthesurroundinghues,itisnolongerviewedassimplythelocalcolor.

TonalApproachTo takea tonalapproach to the localcolorof red,addwhite to lighten the

lightareasandblackoradarkcolortodarkentheareainshadow.Thisclassicapproachhasbeenusedforhundredsofyearsforcreatingformandrepresentinglightandshadow.

ImpressionisticApproachThe Impressionists observed the effects of natural light on objects. As an

objectmoves into light, it getswarmer, not just lighter. The shadow becomescooler, not just darker. Using color and value in this natural way adds animmediate feeling of natural light. Notice how blue the shadow is and howorangethesunlightis.

Open-ColorApproachOpen color is the emotional and arbitrary expressive use of colorwith no

relationtothenatural,localcolororthecoloroflightandreflectedhues.Itdoes,however,stillfollowtheprinciplesofvalueandcolortemperaturesuchaswarmlightandcoolshadowsorcoollightandwarmshadows.

OpenOpencolor is typical of theworkofHenriMatisse aswell as theGerman

Expressionist painters of the early twentieth century. Their use of color wascompletelyarbitraryandbasedonpersonalresponsestotheirsubjects.Thiscanalso be a viable choice of color usage for the painterly painter to createexcitement and emotional impact. What is most important to observe andrecognize with this approach is that correct value relationships are just asimportant as the use of color. If the value structure doesn’t work, the mostexcitinguseofcolorintheworldwillnotsavethepainting.Opencolorsarealsousedveryeffectivelytoaccentawork.Forexample,the

overlygreenlandscapethatmostofusencountercanbedramaticallyenhancedbyunderpaintingwithcomplementsorarbitrarycolor.Thinkaboutusingredandorange hues or red and blue-violet hues for that otherwise green landscape.Consider placing a complementary color stroke next to a dynamic spot in thepaintingoraddinglifetoashadowwithastrokeofpureredorblue.

ColorControlAllofthesecolortheoriesareacceptable,soitbecomesaquestionofwhat

approach you, as the creator of the painting,want to use.Whichever one youchooseneedstodominate.Don’tconfuseyourselfortheviewerwithequalandmismatched effects of all three. Choose and work with one until you arecomfortablewithit,andthenexperimentwiththeothers.Thiscouldtakeyears.Manypaintershaveworkedwithjustoneofthemfortheirentirecareer,sodon’t

feelyouneedtochange.Justgaincontrolandunderstandwhyyouarechoosingthecolorsyouareusing.

ImpressionisticColorHere, color is exaggerated to createmood and to heighten the contrast of

warm sunlight and cool snow in shadow.Thedark and light tones convey therealityofthescenewhilecolorisusedforeffect.

MORNINGCALM


DOESTHISACCENTWORK?Ifyoubackupfiveormorefeet(2m)fromthepaintingandtheaccentenhancesanddoesnotdistractorcall toomuchattention to itself, leave it.On theotherhand,ifitisdistracting,reduceoreliminateit.

WarmandCoolColors

Whenyoudividethecolorwheelinhalf(orientedwithredat thetop),onehalf is warm and the other is cool. Both red and green have hues of eachtemperature,while red-orange, orange, yellow and yellow-green are thewarmcolors,andblue-green,blue,blue-violet,violetandred-violetarethecoolhues.Yellowisthewarmestcolor,andblueisthecoolestcolor.So you have two references towarm and coolwhen describing color.As a

painter,youneedtoconsidertherelationshipofcolorsandnotjusttheirlocationon thecolorwheel.Askyourself if a color ison thewarmorcool sideof thewheelandhowitcomparestotheothercolorsinthepainting.Compared to blue, blue-green is warm, as is violet. Since pure blue is the

coldest color, any color moving away from it is warmer in comparison. Pureyellowis thewarmestcoloron thewheel,soorange iscoolersince itcontainsredandismovingawayfromyellow.Yellow-greeniscoolcomparedtoyellow,butwarmcomparedtoblue-green.I can’t tell you how crazy I thought my artist mentor and teacher Ann

Templetonwaswhenshetoldmetouseawarmblueinthesky.“Howcanacoldcolor like blue bewarm?” I thought.Once I understood this concept ofwarmandcoolrelationships,itwasobvious.

DividingtheColorWheelColorsontherightsideofthecolorwheelarewarm,andcolorsontheleft

sidearecool.CadmiumYellowLightisthepurestandwarmestwarmcolor,andCobaltBlueisapure,coldblue.Anyothercolorwillbewarmorcoolcomparedtothesetwo.

ValueChangeIsEssentialThecircleontheleftshowswarmlightwithcoolshadowsaswellastonal

valuechange.Thecircleontherightalsoshowswarmlightwithcoolshadowsbutnovaluechange.Usetheapproachontheleftaroundyourcenterofinterestand in the foreground. Use the approach on the right when your value massneedstostaysimple.Colorshowslightandshadow,andvalueaddsdynamics.Learnhowtochoose.

TransitionalColorsCombinewarmandcoolcomplementarycolorsequallytoachieveaneutral

dark.Usewhitetocontrolthevalueofthesemixtureswhenpaintingtransitionsbetweenwarmand cool hues. Placing awarmand a cool directly next to oneanothercanbetoodramatic,especiallyinanylocationotherthanthecenterofinterest.

GraysandBrownsAnycoloronthecoolsideofthecolorwheelwillmakeagray,andanyhue

onthewarmsidewillmakeabrown.Askyourselfwhatkindofbrownorgrayyouneed,whatvalueitshouldbe,whereit’sgoingandwhatitwillbenextto.

LightContrastsThecontrastbetweenwarmandcoolcolor iswhatmakesus feel the light.

Thestrongerthecontrastofwarmandcool,thebrighteradayitwillbe.So,onanovercastdaytherewillbeverylittlewarmandcoolcolorchange.Withoutthecool colorwewouldn’tunderstandhowwarm the light is.As in thispainting,

whenweseeverywarmlight,itmakestheshadowscoolastheyreflectthecolorof the sky.The stronger andwarmer the light, the cooler the shadows appear.However, when we see shadows full of warm reflected light, it makes thesunlightlookcool.Thenormalsituationistohavewarmlightwithcoolshadow,butthecoollightscenariodoesfrequentlyoccurandisexcitingtopaintwhenitdoes.

SUMMERREFLECTIONS

Pastelonsandedpaper20"×16"(51cm×41cm)

WarmDominanceThispaintingshowsthedominanceofwarmcolor.Mostofthehuesfallon

thewarmsideofthecolorwheel.Emotionally,peoplerespondmorepleasantlytowarmcolors.

COTTONWOODFALL


CoolDominanceThis painting is done in a dominance of cool colors.Viewers tend to find

cool colors more mysterious and intriguing. The eye is drawn to the smallsectionofwarmcolor.Thisisduetosizeandcontrastofcolor,butalsobecausepeoplearemoreattractedtowarmcolors.

WINTERMORNING


ColorHarmony

For themost part, don’t plan the harmony in your art; let it develop fromyour subject. Natural color harmonies are usually better than what we wouldinvent anyway. Subtle harmonies in nature are wonderful and sometimesunexpected. What’s more, they always work. These natural harmonies getmessedupwhenhumansstartintroducingcolorsandvaluesintothelandscape.Take, for example, a beautiful natural rural scene, and then envision manbuildingapurplehouse.Thecolorharmonyisgone.Thereare timeswhen theharmony isenhancedby theseextremecolorsand

thatiswhatmakesthesubjectexcitingforus.Take,forexample,atealboatorbuilding next to theCaribbeanSea.Or a red barn in a green landscape.Theybecomebeautifulcomplementstothenaturalenvironment.Asyoustepback toevaluatewhatyouhavedone,askyourself if thecolors

you’reusingareharmonizing.Ifthey’renot,andyou’renotsurewhatisoutofbalance, refer to one of the harmonies listed here, and force the colors of thepainting into one of them. If your natural selections are working, leave themaloneandjustkeeppainting.

ComplementaryHarmonyA complementary harmony scheme includes any two hues opposite one

anotheronthecolorwheel,withonemoredominatethantheother.

PrimaryTriadHarmonyAdominanceofthethreeprimarycolors.

SecondaryTriadHarmonyOrange, violet andgreenmakeup the secondary triad.This is actually the

mostusedcolorharmonyinlandscapepainting:greentrees,coolvioletshadows,andwarmlightgrassesandearthcolors.

AnalogousHarmonyThisistakingapieshapeofcolorfromanyportionofthewheeltodominate

thepainting.Acomplementofthepieshapeisgenerallyusedforaccents.

WinterColorHarmonyThiswinter scene shows a natural use of blue andorange complements to

contrast the cold snow and the warm winter colors of the plants. Colorcombinationsthatworktogetherwithinthepaintinganddonotconflictwithoneanothercreateeffectivecolorharmony.

WINTERCOMPLEMENTS


UNPLANNEDHARMONYColor harmony is something that you should evaluate and adjustwhile you’repainting.Don’tcontrolthescene;respondtoit.

ColorIntensity

Color looks intensewhen surroundedbygrayedhues. If all thecolorsyouusearebrightandvibrant,theywillcanceleachotherandyouwillbeleftwithchaos. One color family should always dominate and the others should besubordinate.AnanalogyIalwaysuseinthissituationisifyouwentintoaconcerthalland

theorchestraplayed thesamenoterepeatedlyforanhour,you’dgoscreamingfrom the hall.Well, that’s the effect you’ll create for the viewer if you don’torchestratethecolorsofyourpainting.Takethevieweronajourney.Don’tborethemwiththesamecoloreverywhere.Thebottomlineisthatitdoesn’tmatterhowdullorintenseyoupaintaslong

asthereisvarietyanddominancewithinthepainting.

CompetingColorsWhenyouarestandinginfrontofthem,theintensityofyellowcottonwood

leavesinautumnsunlightoftenseemsbrighterthanpaintcanachieve.Itisveryimportantwhenpaintingascenewiththisintensitythattheothercolorsenhancetheintensehuesanddonotcompetewiththem.Onlyonecolorfamilyshouldbedominant.

MORNINGCOLOR


MutedHuesThisdesertcanyonsceneisdominatedbydull,mutedhues.Theonlybright,

cleancoloristhesky,whichisacoolblue.Theskyisclearandshouldfeelthatwaycontrastedagainstthesofthuesofthedesertrocksandwater.

SANTAELENACANYON


TheLimitedPalette

Workingwithaverylimitedpalettewillteachyoualotaboutmixingcolors.Itwillalsonearlyassurecolorharmonyinyourpainting,sinceeverycolorinthepaintingwillbemadefromthefewyou’reusing.Ifyouwanttoincludeanewcolor,makesureyouusesomeofitinmanyofyourcolormixtures.Artistsgetintotroublewhentheyaddanewcolortotheirworkwithouthavingusedit inothermixtures.Youmayfindthatworkingwithalargegroupofcolorsdoesnotimproveyour

painting.Infact,itwilloftenmakeittoobusywithcolorchanges.Usingalargerselection of hues should be done for convenience or because you want atransparenthuecomparedtotheopaqueonesthatyou’reusingorviceversa.Forexample,IusuallyworkwithCadmiumOrangepurelyforconveniencebecauseIusesomuchofitwhenImixgreens.ButIcanveryeasilymakeanorangebymixingCadmiumYellowLightandPeryleneRed.My limitedpalette isderived fromsomebasicprinciples: the importanceof

theprimariestomixingcolors;warmandcoolhues;andthepurityofcolor.

LimitedPaletteThis palette is made up of Cadmium Yellow Light, Perylene Red,

Ultramarine Blue, Viridian and Titanium-ZincWhite. The primary colors arerepresented,providingthecapability tomixanyhuefoundonthecolorwheel.Theywon’texactlymatchthepurecolorwheel,buttheywill looksimilar,andallthecolormixtureswillharmonize.

PaletteonLocationWhen traveling andworkingon location, the limitedpalettemakesperfect

sense.Youdon’thaveroomtocarryandusealotofcolors.Byrepresentingthethreeprimarycolors,youcanmixafullspectrumofhues.

DRYWASH,BIGBENDNATIONALPARKOilonlinenpanel8"×10"(20cm×25cm)

ImprovedHarmoniesOnceyouhavebecome comfortablemixing colorwith a limited palette, it

will not feel restrictive and you will be amazed by the quality of your colorharmonies.Colorneeds tobecome responsive to theevolutionof thepainting,andshouldnotbesomethingthatyouaffectwithhuesstraightfromthetube.

AFTERNOONLIGHT


LIMITINGYOURPALETTEUse a limited palette to premix your colors. You canmake orange or YellowOchre,ormixViridianandUltramarineBlue tocreateaCeruleanBlue.Teachyourselftomixsecondarycolors,andyouwillsoonfindthatyoucanpaintwellwiththelimitedpalette.

TheLimitedEarth-TonedPalette

TheOldMastersdidnothavetheintensityofhuesthatareavailabletoday,soit isnowonder theytendedtoworktonallyandpaintedwithdarkandlightlocal color.Pure reds,blues andyellowswere rare andveryexpensive.That’swhypaintingslikeThomasGainsborough’sTheBlueBoyweresodynamicfortheirtime.These artists workedmostly with colors like Naples Yellow, Venetian Red,

anddarkcolorslikeVanDykeBrownandblack.Whilethispaletteseemsverylimited,itprovidedallthatwasneededforaneffectivetonalpainting.Thedullyellowsplacednexttoblackandgraycreatethefeelingofwarmandcool,andyellow and black form a green. Bright blue was accessible then and wassometimesaddedfordepictingskyandwater.

AnEarth-TonedPaletteMylimitedearth-tonedpaletteconsistsofYellowOchreLight,VenetianRed,

Ultramarine Blue and Chromatic Black. This could be expanded to includeNaplesYellowHue,BurntSienna,BurntUmberandTerraVerte, thoughIfindthelimitedversionworksjustfine.

TheUnderpaintingWhether you use a full-color, limited or earth-toned palette, first find the

main shapes and average the local color andvalue of each. It’s a lot easier tomodifytheseaveragemassesthantoblindlyaddhues,valuesandtexturestoawhitecanvas.Thelimitedearth-tonedpaletteiscalmandquiet.Althoughyoustillhaveall

theadvantagesofwarm/coolanddark/light,thecolorsaretoneddown.Thisisagreatpalettechoiceforcreatingintimate,quietscenes.

LimitingEarthTonesThis scene demonstrates the limitation of greens and color intensitywhen

workingwith the earth-tonedpalette. In real life, thegreenswerevery intenseandvibrant.But thepaintingharmonizes, andall thehues relatewell. Ithasanice,quietmood.Ifthisisnotthefeelingyouwanttocreate,useapalettewithmorevibranthues.

SUMMERFLOW


TheLimitedPalettewithGrays

Addingawarmandacoolgraytoalimitedpaletteprovidesagreaterdegreeofflexibilityinmixingwarmandcoolhuesofvariousvalues.Youwillendupwith a paintingofmore subdued colors thanyouwouldwith a simple limitedpalette.Ifyouwantsuchsubduedcolors,useprimarycolorsmadewithmodernpigmentssincetheywillstaymoreintensethanmineralcolorswhenmixedintothegrays.PhthaloandQuinacridonecolorsholdupverywell(althoughIpreferthemoresubduedhuesproducedbythelessdramaticprimaries).

SimplePrimariesThis palette makes use of a simple group of primaries: Cadmium Yellow

Light,PeryleneRedandUltramarineBlue.AddedtotheseareChromaticBlack,MonochromeCool andMonochromeWarmgrays.Youcould easilymix thesegraysfromtheprimariesandblackbeforeyoustartpainting.Whenmixingawarmmidtonehue,usetheMonochromeWarm;whenmixing

acoolmidtone,usetheMonochromeCool.Forcleancolormixtures,usejusttheprimaryhuesorprimariesplusblack.

SurprisingPaletteThis painting shows that you can mix a full range of color, value and

intensity with a limited palette. I don’t think anyone looking at the paintingwouldrealizethatitwasdonewiththreeprimaryhuesandgrays.

FALLWILLOWS


PrimaryIntensityYoucanstillmixveryvibranthueswhileworkingwiththispalettebecause

oftheintensityofthethreeprimarycolors.Thewarmandcoolgraysareniceformixingthemoresubtlehuesofthesnow.

EARLYFALLSNOW


GrayPaletteThegraypalettesimplifiedthemixingprocesstoachieveall thequiethues

inthispainting.Tryselectingalimitedpalettethataidsinthelookyouaretryingtoachieve,butalwaysmakesurethatred,blueandyellowarerepresented.

MORNINGRETURN


EdgeControlIsCrucial

Everystrokecreatesanedge.Theskillcomesfromrecognizingiftheedgesaregoodorneedtosomehowbemodified.Edgesgivepoetrytoyourstrokesandcanmakethemquiettransitionsordynamicfocalpoints.Forapainterlypainting,edgecontrolismoreimportantthanthebrushstrokes.

Youcanapplyalotofbeautifulbrushstrokes,valuesandhues,butiftheedgesdon’tharmonizewiththeseelements,thepaintingwillnotwork.Youmustalsoconsidertheedgesbetweenshapesandforms.Edges can be hard, soft or moderate. Hard edges are dynamic divisions

between areas; these are also called sharp edges.Soft edgesare smooth, quiettransitionsandareoftenreferredtoaslostedges.Moderateedgesencompassallof themanyvariationsbetweenhardandsoftedges.Dynamicedgescommandattention,sostepbackoftentoevaluatewhattheedgesinyourworkaredoinginthe composition. Toomany obvious edgesmake awork busy. Toomany softones make the work weak. You must orchestrate a poetic balance. This is asubjectivecreativechoiceonyourpart.Askyourself if theedgeofa stroke iscallingattentiontoanareathatshouldbequiet,andviceversa.

ThinEdgesTocreate sharp, thinedges,use the thinedgeof thepaletteknife.Youcan

alsoscratch into thewetpaintwith the tipof theknifeor theendof thebrushhandle.

AnotherMethodAnothermethodofmakingathinlineistomakeastrokeandthenpaintover

theedgesonbothsidesuntilthelineisthedesiredthickness.Youcanalsovarythethicknessandsharpnessofthelineasyoupaintintoit.

EdgeswithPaletteKnivesWhen layingonareasofpaintwithapaletteknifeyoucanmakeonlyone

goodedgewiththestroke.So,makethegoodedgewhereyouwantit,andthensoftenorpaintbackintotheotheredgetomakeitfitthepainting.

Quietedge,similarvalues

Softenededge,contrastingvalues

Transitionalcolor

Hardedge,contrastingvalues

Colors,EdgesandValuesThe top left example shows how two colors of similar value have a quiet

edgebetweenthem.Youwouldusethiseffect,forexample,inamassthatyouneededtokeepsimilarinvaluewhilerepresentingthewarmandcoolofsunlightandshadow.The bottom right shows the dynamics of a hard edge with strong value

contrast. The upper right sample shows how you could soften or lessen thishardness by simply blending the edge with a brush. Be careful, though—sometimesblendingmakesthepaintingdullandmuddylooking.Thebottomleftdemonstratesmixingatransitionalcolortosoftenthecontrast.Noneoftheedgesaresoftened,butthetransitioncolorlessenstheharshnessofthehardedge.Thisis a great effect in painterly painting where the integrity of brushstrokes isimportant.

TransitionalEdgesAnotherimportantcharacteristicofedgesistheirvalue.Ifthevaluesoftwo

strokes are far apart on thevalue scale, the edgewill bedominant and appearsharp.Softenthiseffectbyblendingthetwostrokestogether(theeasywayout),orpaintastrokeortwooftransitionalvaluebetweenthem.Thelattertechniqueissomethingnotmanybeginnerartistsconsider,butinpainterlypaintingitisfar

bettertosavetheintegrityofyourstrokesbynotblendingthemaway.Addingacoupletransitionalcolor/valuestrokesnotonlyenhancesthebrushwork,butalsoaddsapainterlyelementofitsown.The closer together the color and value of two strokes or masses, the less

obviousistheedgebetweenthem.MaryCassattusedthisveryeffectivelywhenpainting the soft-looking fleshtone of children. She exchangedwarm and coolcolor for lightandshadoweffect,butchangedvaluevery little tocreateasoftfeeltotheform.Thesetransitionsdon’tworkwellwhenphotographedinblackandwhitebutareamazingwhenviewedincolor.

IntegratingEdgesTheorchestrationofhardandsoftedges,andofcolorandvalue,guide the

viewerthroughthepainting.Letareasofyourworkbemysteriousandquiettoemphasizewhatismostimportant.

SPANISHAQUEDUCT


OrchestratingEdgesAtmosphere and distance create softer edges.Regardless of the contrast in

thedistance, theedgewillbesoftcompared to themiddleandforegroundand

needstobepaintedthatwaytocommunicatedepthinapainting.Sharpeninganedge in the distance flattens the visual space so that it looks more abstract,emphasizingthetwo-dimensionalqualitiesofthesurface.Ifthisisyourgoal,gofor it, but if you are trying to represent natural space,watch that those edgesdon’tgettoosharp.

Lightvs.ShadowsKeepyouredgesquietandsoftintheshadowandmakethemcrispandclean

inthelightaroundthecenterofinterest.

STANDINGPROUD


Roundforms turnawayfromtheviewer.Clouds in theskyhavesoftedges.Keeptheedgessoftevenwhenportrayingadynamicsunlitcloudagainstadeepbluesky.Movingwaterandfieldsofgrassesinthewindwilllookstarkandunrealistic

iftheyarepaintedwithsharpedgesandwillbreakupthesimplicityofthemass.A moderate choice is best here since a very soft edge will look like blurredmotioninaphotographtakenwithalongexposuretime.

Squint to see the edges in your scene, and then be selective to control thevisualflow.Byallmeans,don’tpainttheedgesthatyoudon’tseejustbecauseyouknowwheretheedgeofsomethingis.Ifyoudon’tseeit,don’tpaintit.Theeyeisalwaysdrawntocontrastsofhardandsoftedgesaswellasofcolor

andvalue.Usethisfactasavisualtooltocreateapoeticpainting,anddon’tbeaslavetothescene’scontent.

EdgesinCreeksA river or creek bedmakes an excellent scene for practicing edges.Water

needstoflow,butcan’tbetoosoft-edged.Therocksneedsoft-edgedformbuthavedistinctedgesseparatingthemfromotherobjects.Thebackgroundneedstobesuggestiveoftrees,bushesandrocks,buttheedgesshouldnotcompetewiththemoreimportantelementsofthescene.

RIVERROCK


CapturingMood

If you simply copy a scene from the source, you risk creating a visuallyboringpainting.Youmaysucceedincapturingthecolorandvaluewithagoodcomposition,butwhereisthecharacter?Doyoumerelywanttorecordwhatyousee,orareyoucreatingaworkwithemotion?WhenIgointothefield,mostofmyenpleinairworkisfocusedoncapturing

therelationshipsofthescene.Howdarkorlight,warmorcool,dullorvibrantisone element compared to another?For a field study this is plenty to consider.However, there are times when I am inspired by themood of a scene. Thiselusiveemotionalqualitycanbethemostdifficulttocapture,duetotherapidlychanging light and the natural elements of a landscape, or the mechanicalcoolnessofamodelorstilllifeinastudiosituation.Tocapturemoodeffectively,alloftheelementsofcolor,value,composition

and edgesmustwork together.Youmaywant a scene bright and cheerful, ordarkandsomber,orsomewhereinbetween.When you go beyond simply recording the relationships of elements in a

scene,youmayignorecertainvalueandcolorchangestoemphasizethefeelingyouareafter.The low,highandmiddlekeyvalueplansare important tools indoing this.Choosing towork inadramatic lowkey, forexample,may requirethatyouignorethebrilliantlightonthefieldtoemphasizethecontrastbetweentreesandsky.Askyourself,“Whatisthemostimportantthingaboutthisscenetome?”Your brushwork is also important to themoodyou are trying to create. For

instance, hard-edged, dynamic strokes of thick paintwould not be appropriateforapeacefulscene.Capturingthemoodofadarkorcloudyscene,orafleetingstrokeoflightona

distantmountain,isachallenge.Lookforthatdramaticmomentandfreezeitinyourmemory, then usewhat is in front of you for reference only.Don’t startcopyingwhat’soutthereoryouwilllosetheideathatattractedyou.Forthemostpart,creatingamoodrequiresthatyouminimizethedynamicsof

mostofthescenetoemphasizethedramainaparticulararea.Ittakesrecordinga scene to another level of thought. Before you start, ask yourself if you arerecording the relationshipofelements in this scene,or is therea feelingaboutthis time and place that youwant to capture and communicate in the finishedpicture.Decideonthisbeforeyoustartpainting.Thiswillgiveyourchoicesfor

value,colorandedgespurposeandmeaning.

LimitedPalettewithGraysThis studycaptures the effect of low rain cloudson thedistantmountains.

The grayness of the color contributes to the quiet, somber mood of theapproaching rain. Bright, clean colors would create the sense of sunlight andthereforewouldnotfittheintendedmoodofthisscene.

THEMOODOFRAIN


STAYTRUETOYOURORIGINALIDEAAneffectivewaytoapproachamoodysituationistotakealargebrushorabigpastelstickandverysimplylayinthedynamicsofyourscene.Toooftenwelosethisideaaswegetcaughtupinthepaintingofotherelements.So,asyoubegintoembellishtheshapes,don’tlosetheideabyaddingtoomanycolors,valuesortextures.Alwayskeepaneyetowardyourbeginningidea,andadjustwhatyouaddtofitthemoodyouwereseeking.

BringingItAllTogetherThisisalow-keypaintingwithalargedarkareaandasmalllightarea.The

mood is quiet and thoughtful. The only bright color and value is used in thecenterofinterestareatogiveitapositiveemotionalfeel.Thesomber,darkgrayhuesofthemajorityofthepaintingareusedtodramatizethepleasantfeelingoftheraincloudsclearing.

CLEARING


TemperatureContrastsThemoodinthisworkisproducedmostlybythecontrastofwarmandcool

colors.Noneofthecolorsareparticularlyintense,soitismostlyaplayofvalueandcolortemperaturecontrasts.

AFTERNOONSHADOWS


CREATINGMOODConsider allof theelementsof a scenewhencreatingamood.Constantlyaskyourself during the painting process if what you are doing with composition,value,colorandedgeshelpsorhurts themoodyouare trying todepict in thiswork.

BOQUILLASCANYONOilonlinenpanel12"×8"(30cm×20cm)

4ThePainterlyProcess

The method we use to construct a painting determines our success inexecutingourideas.Methodisanacquiredskill,whereinwebringtogetherthefundamentalstoachieveourgoalofhowwewanttopaint,andhowwewantourworktolook.Remember,techniqueproducestheendresult.Forme,thepainterlyapproachismoreabouttherelationshipsofcolor,value,

composition, textureandmoodthanit isabout thesubjectbeingpainted.It’saprocessbywhichweinterpretandexpressanideaorfeelingratherthanrenderaparticularsubject.

ThePainterlyWorkingMethod

Artists usemany approaches to create their work.Most are a variation ofeitherthelineardrawingapproachorthepainterlymassapproach.Regardlessofhow you work, you can finish a picture in a poetic and painterly manner bysuggestingdetailwheresuchinformationisimportanttoconveythesubject,andbylooselysuggestingoreliminatingitwhereitisnot.Formanyallaprima(paintinonesitting)artists,thepainterlyapproachisthe

most natural way to express their interpretation of a scene. The painterlyapproach expresses the relationship of themainmasses rather than draws thedetailofasubject.Manyartistsaresofocusedonthesubjectandongettingthecontours and textures of it “correct” that their work feels stiff and overdone.Using a painterly approach, the artist tends to dwell less on the details of thesubjectandmoreonthepoeticqualitiesofshapes,edges,values,colorsandthemoodofthepicture.ThepainterlyapproachIuseisverytraditionalbecauseIwork:•Darktolight•Thintothick•Transparenttoopaque

Watercolorutilizes the reverseof theseapproachessinceyousave the lightsand build the middle and dark hues. For this reason, we will not discusswatercolor,thoughitcanalsobeusedasapainterlymedium.Theconceptsforpaintingwithoil,pastelsandacrylicsarethesameexceptfor

variations in how the mediums are handled. This makes workinginterchangeably among them easy. Each can be handled differently, but Iapproachthemallinthesamepainterlyway.Although I do not believe in formulas for painting, there are a number of

conceptstoconsiderasyoudevelopapainterlyworkingmethod.Theseconceptsareintendedtotriggeryourthoughtsandimagination:

1.Formulate the idea.What is your idea for this picture?What do youwanttheviewertosee?Trytohaveaconceptbeforeyoubegin.Itmaychangeasyoupaint,andthat’sOK,butyouneedastartingpoint.

2.Simplifytheshapes.Trytoseethepictureasnomorethansixtoeightmajor shapes. Look for opportunities to link values or color massestogethertomakeoneshapewheretheremayhavebeenthreeorfour.

3.Average the values.Try to organize your subject intomasses of four

values,fiveatthemost.Determinewhataveragesarethedarkest,dark-middle,light-middleandlightestvaluemasses.

4.Average the color.Simplify each valuemass into an analogous colorshape.Determinethedominanthueofeachmassandifthecoloriswarmorcool.Often, amass isdefinedbycolor temperatureeven though thevaluesof thetwoareasarethesame.It isverycommontofindalight,warm-tonedfieldthesamevalueasthecoolsky.

Atthispoint,yourunderpaintingwillbedone.Youhavetheconcept,adesignofmasses,thevaluekeyandcolorharmony.Worklooselywithverylittlepaintorpastelbuildup.Thismakesaddinglayersofpigmentandpushingandpullingtheedgesofmassessimple.

5.Determinetheextremes.Whatisthedarkestdark,thelightestlight,themost intensehue and themost dynamic edge?Youdon’t need to painteach of these completely; just make sure that each is accuratelyrepresented.

PRACTICEWITHSMALLSTUDIESTry to limit yourself to a 1/2-inch (12mm)brushon a 6"×8" (15cm×20cm)panelwithonlythreeprimarycolorspluswhite.Youwilllearntheessentialsofvalues for large, medium and small shapes; intensity; warm and cool coloreffects;andtheimportanceofedgesindefiningobjects.Limitthetimespentoneachofthesestudiestothirtyminutesorless.Thiscanbedoneasawarm-upforeachpainting session,or anentiredaycanbe spenton locationdoingnothingbutthesestudies.Nothingwill teachyoumoreorgiveyoumoreconfidencetohandleanysubjectthandoinglotsofthesesimplestudies.

ThePainterlyApproachImadethisquickstudywithnos.6and8flatsanda1-inch(25mm)painting

knife. The palette included Cadmium Yellow Light, Permanent Alizarin,UltramarineDeepBlue,ViridianandTitaniumWhite.Byfocusingonthemasses,youcanrelatethequalitiesofdesign,value,color

andedgestoexpressthedynamicsofasceneratherthandescribethedetailsofits content. Thus, the painterly approach is about the relationships of theelements.

AFTERNOONLIGHT


With the extremes added to the underpainting, you’ve solved this picture.Nowyoucanconcentrateonhowmuchyouwanttomodifythemassesandhow

muchcolorvariety,textureandinformationyouwanttosuggest.Alwaysmakethesemodificationsinrelationtotheextremesthatyouestablished.Nothingyouadd should be darker, lighter, more intense or more dynamic than yourestablishedextremes.Ifanyof theimportantrelationshipsof theunderpaintingare imbalanced, suchas thecolororvalueofoneof themasses, adjust itnowbeforerefiningthepicturefurthersothattherelationshipsarerelativelycorrect.Youcandeveloptheworkfromthispoint,keepingitsimpleandveryabstract,

orcarryittoaveryrealisticfinishoverseveralpaintingsessions.Thekeyistomake progressively more descriptive strokes that suggest the relationshipswithoutdrawingobjects.Paint shapesand relationships—not things.Themoreexperienced painterly painter recognizes that the early work in these areas ismorespontaneousinbothcolorandgesturethanlaterlayers,andwillallowthistoguidethedevelopmentoftheworkandshowthroughthelayersinthefinishedpainting.

OILDEMONSTRATION

PainterlyStudioWork

Ivaluetheexpressiveandpoeticnatureofthepainterlyapproach,butthere’sa very logical process you can follow to speed the process of painting byestablishing the correct relationships of the masses early in the painting. Byestablishing these relationships early, you are less likely to need dramaticchanges later in the process, and you’ll have a better focus on where you’reheadedwitheachpainting.Thisspeedisessentialwhenworkingoutdoorsunderchanging conditions, though the process is basically the same for large studioworks.

Materials

OILPALETTE

Titanium-ZincWhite•CadmiumYellowLight•YellowOchre•BurntSienna • Cadmium Orange • Permanent Alizarin Crimson • UltramarineDeepBlue•Viridian

BRUSHES

Nos.6and8hogbristlefilberts•no.2hogbristleextralongfilbert

SURFACE

Oil-primedlinenpanel

OTHER

1-inch (25mm)paintingknife •markingpens in 20%, 40%,60%and80%gray•mineralspirits

ReferencePhoto

ValueSketchThissimplevaluestudywasdonewithfourmarkingpens(20%,40%,60%

and 80%gray). I always save thewhite of the paper and use a black pen foraccentsifneeded.

1FindtheBasicStructurewithWarmTonesFindthebasicstructureofthesceneandsimplifytheshapesasmuchasyoucan.UsemineralspiritstothinawarmtoneofBurntSiennaforsketching.Ialmostalwaysstartwithwarmhues,astheyarewell-suitedtothelandscapeandblend

nicely into the scene. Ihaveusedcoolhues,but they tend tograyandmuddyadditionallayersofcolor.

2FillintheMajorShapesFill in themajor shapeswith the average color andvalue for eachmass.Startwiththedarkesthuestokeepthemcleanandfreeofwhitepaint.Thinthecolorwasheswithmineralspiritsoramedium,butdon’tmakethemtoowet,oritwillbedifficulttoaddlayersofcolorwhenworkingwet-into-wet.Usejustenoughtomakethepainteasytospread.Someshapesofsimilarvaluemaybeseparatedbywarmandcoolhues,asin

theshadowmassofthecliff.Theuprightplainhaswarmreflectedlight,whiletheslantedpartreflectsthecoolbluesofthesky.Togethertheseformonemassoflight-middlevalue.Thevaluesarenotrestrictedtolightorshadow.Herethemiddle-lightvalueshapeoftheshadowontheuprightcliffisthesamevalueasthesunlitareaoftheslantedhillsinthemiddleground.

3EstablishtheExtremesAfter themasses are filled inwith their average color andvalue, establish theextremes.Identifythedarkestdark,thelightestlight,themostintensecolorandthe sharpestormostdynamicedge. It’snotnecessary to complete theseareas,justestablishthem.Younowhavethestructureneededtopaintthescene.Nothingwillbelighter

ordarker,moreintenseorsharper-edgedthantheseextremes.Youalsohavethevalue relationship, color harmony and composition for the painting. Next,modifythemassesandsuggestformanddetail,butbecarefulnottoclutterthesemasseswithtoomanycolorsandvaluechanges.

4ContinueDevelopingthePaintingWith the extremes inplace and themasses correctly established,you cannowdevelopthepainting.

Paint thesky,sinceyouknowexactlyhowlight tomake itcompared to thelightonthechimneyrock.Thenbeginmodifyingtheshadowshapeofthecliff,addingthesuggestionsofcolorvariations,texturesandformswhilemaintainingthevalueintegrityofthemass.

5WorkWet-Into-WetwithSubtleValueShiftsWorkthepainttogetherwet-into-wetonthesurface.Donotovermixthewarmandcoolhues;thiswillcreatemud.Noticehowclosethevaluesare.Veryslightvalueshiftsareallittakestoshowform.Theedgeoflightonthefrontofthechimneyrocksisthemostdynamicedge

inthepainting.Contrastthisunusualshapewiththewarmhuesagainstthecooloftheskyandshadowstomakethisareaimportant.Itwouldhavebeeneasiertolessen the dynamics of this area and sharpen an edge and contrast in theforeground to change the center of interest, but this makes for a far moreinterestingpainting.

6CompletethePaintingAsyoumodifythemasses,relatetotheextremessothatyoudon’tcompetewithwhatismostimportant.It’sunusual tohave themost intensecolor in thedistancewithout flattening

the space.To flatten the space,keep theyellow-greens in the foreground fullysaturatedandbesurenottowashthemoutwithwhitepaint.Thevaluerangeofthe saturated yellow-greens and strong darks comes forward and allows theclose-valuecliffstoappeardistantinspiteoftheirstrongcolor.It’salsoimportanttowatchtheedgesasyouaddmorevaluerangeandmore

saturatedhuestotheforeground.Bybeingmindfulofyouredges,you’llavoidcreating an edge contrast that would compete with the chimney rocks in thedistance.Apply thick paint to the foreground to add texture; the background cliffs,

especiallythoseinshadow,shouldhaveverylittletexture.

CLIFFSHADOWS


OILDEMONSTRATION

PainterlyLocationWork

Myapproachtopaintingonlocationisthesameasforthestudio;however,on location I am more concerned with studying the correct relationships ofmasses thanwithproducing a gallery-readypainting. If I doget gallerywork,great,butthatisneverthegoal.Ittookyearsofpracticetoallowmyselftothinkthiswaybecauseweallnaturallywanteveryworktobeamasterpiece.Inthisdemonstrationyoucanseehowfollowingalogicalapproachisafast

andaccuratewaytocapturethedynamicsofascene.Byquicklyestablishingtheaveragecolorandvaluemassesandtheextremes,youarebetterabletohandlechangingconditionssuchassunlightandclouds.Onceyouhavedevelopedthisunderpainting it isyour roadmapso thatevenasconditionschangeyouknowthedirectionyouwanttogo.

Materials

OILPALETTE

Titanium-Zinc White • Cadmium Yellow Light • Brunt Sienna •CadmiumOrange•PermanentAlizarinCrimson•UltramarineDeepBlue•Viridian

BRUSHES

Nos.6and8hogbristlefilberts•no.2hogbristleextralongfilbert

SURFACE


OTHER


1DrawtheBasicStructureBeginbyfindingthesimpleorganizationofshapes.

2FillintheAverageColorandValueFill in theaveragecolorandvalueforeachshape.Keepthepaint thin,butnottoowet.Thewettertheunderpainting,theharderitwillbetoaddlayersofcolorwet-into-wetinonesession.

3FindtheExtremesEstablish the extremes of color, value and edge: the darkest dark, the lightestlight,themostintensecolorandthedominantedge.Atthispointinthedesign,you still have options for the center of interest.You couldmake it the distantmountainortheyellowtreesinthefield.

4DeveloptheSkyandDistantMountains

Withthedesign,colorandvaluepatternestablished,usetheextremesaspointsof comparison. I began to develop the sky and distant mountains because Iwantedtoestablishtherelationshipbetweenthemearlyinthepaintingprocess.

5DistinguishTexturesandValuesAs thepaintingnearscompletion, concentrateon the textureandvaluesof thetreesandfieldcomparedtothebackgroundmountains.Remember:Thickpaint,hardedges,strongcolor,valuecontrastsandvigorousbrushworkcomeforwardwhilesoftedgesandcool,thincolorrecede.

KNOWYOURMEDIUMExpression and suggestion in painting directly reflect the artist’s command oftechniqueandunderstandingofthemedium.

6AddtheFinishingTouchesI chose tomake the lightyellow trees against thedarkmountain the centerofinterest for the design. To me, this painting is about the space—the subtledynamicofthedistantmountainwithsnowandskycomparedtothebrilliantfallcolorsinthefront.Itwouldbeeasytocreatetoomanyvalueandcolorchangesinthemountains

andclouds,making the scenebusy. It is very important in a scene like this tokeep the shapes close to the simplicity of the basic structurewhile suggestingcolorchangesandtextures.The way a work is constructed shows how a painter interprets the subject.

Allowingbackgroundcolorstoshowthroughaddsdepthandspontaneitytothepainting.

FALLCOLORS


PASTELDEMONSTRATION

BuildingPainterlyLayers

Pastelsareafunandchallengingmediumtoworkwith.Youcanusethemina thin, linear fashion as a drawing medium, or you can paint with them bybuildinglayersofcolorwithvariousgradesofpastel.Pastelsarewellsuitedtoapainterlyapproachbecauseoftheirgesturalquality.Sincewithpastelsyoucanonlymixcoloropticallyinlayers,youneedtohave

alotofpastelsonhandtoachievethevarioushuesandvaluechoicesneededforpainting. That said, I am always surprised to see how few pastels it takes tocompleteapainting.Thekeyisknowinginadvanceexactlywhichcolors,valuesandgradesareneeded,sobethoughtfulinassemblingyourworkingset.My working set includes a full range of hues covering the primary and

secondarycolorsinnofewerthanfourvalues.It’simportanttohavethegrayedtonesofthesecolorsandonlyaselectfewveryintensehues.Iorganizetheminhard grades mostly for underpainting, middle grades for the majority of thepaintingandverysoftgradesforaccentsandthickopaquestrokes.Unwrap your pastels and break them into approximately 1-inch (25mm)

sticks. This will allow the greatest flexibility for making a variety of strokesfromthebroadsidetothetip.

Materials

PASTELS

A large selection of hard pastels •A full range of hues and values inmediumandsoftpastels

SURFACE

Light,neutral,sandedpastelpapermountedonboard

OTHER

Stiffbristlebrush•waterormineralspirits

DRAWINGORPAINTING?Apasteldrawingallowsamajorityof thesurface tone toshow.Whenmostofthesurfaceiscoveredwithlayersofpastelhues,itisconsideredpainting.

PastelValueGroupsIselectedthesehardpastelsinfourvaluegroups.Eachgroupistheaverage

color andvalue for themain shapes of the scene.Notice that the light-middlevaluegrouphasbothbluefortheskyandpinkfortheearth.Theseareasareverydifferentincolortemperature,butaresimilarinvalue.

PastelsforSubtleLayeringHere are the soft pastels I used for this painting. The red was the most

dynamichueinthissceneandhadthemostvariety.However,mostofthepastelsused were gray andmixed with other colors. This allows for subtle layering,whichisanimportantpartofthepainterlyapproach.

1BlockintheBasicShapesandDirectionalFlowStartingwithapieceofsandedpastelpapermountedonboard,locatethemainshapesanddirectionalflowofthescenewithawarm-tonedhardpastel.Usingalight,neutralpaperallowsyoubettercontrolofthecolorharmony.

2FillintheMainMasseswithFourValuesMostlyusingtheflatsideofthehardpastels,laydownathinlayerofcolorforeachofthemainmasses.Dothisbyaveragingthemassesintofourvaluegroups.Althoughyoucan seemorevalues than that, fourwill giveyou agood, cleanstructuretopaintover.Ifyouusemorethanthat,thescenewillloseitsstructureandbecometoobusy.

3ScrubtoCreateaSolidLayerUsingastiffbristlebrushandwaterormineralspirits,scrubthehardpastelintothesandedpaper.Thistonesthepaperinthevalueandcolorchosenforeachofthemainshapes,andthelayersofcolorthatwillshowthroughinthefinishwillbe appropriate for themass (unlike the spot of white or color youwould getworkingonatonedsurface).Thiswayyouwon’thaveunwantedcolorshowingthroughyourlayersofpastel.

4CreateSoftEdgesSoftlyblendtheshapesfromonetoanothersothatasthepaintingdevelops,theedgesofshapescanbepushedandpulledwithease.Ifyoucreatehardedgesorleavepapershowingaroundtheshapes,theycanbeproblematicwhenyourefinethepainting.Thissoft-edgedtoningservesmanypurposes.Itshowsyouthecolorharmony

andvaluepatternof thesceneaswellas thedesign.If there’sapartyoudon’tlike,it’seasytochangeandre-toneatthisstagesincethereisverylittlepastelontopofthesurface.SometimesIachievethisresultusingwater,mineralspiritsandalcohol,orby

simplyrubbinginthehardpastelwithacloth.Eachmethodworksandproducesadifferentlook.Aftertimeyouwillchoosethemethodthatbestsuitsthesceneoryourpreferredstyle.

5ReestablishtheDarksandEstablishtheExtremesReestablishthedarks,followingthewashandtoningofthescene.Manytimesthey are overly softened in the previous steps. Identify the darkest dark, thelightestlight,themostintensecolorandthesharpestedge.With this undertone and the addition of the extremes, you have a complete

roadmapfor thepainting.Itwillbeeasytomodifyhues,valuesandcolorsasyouaddlayersofcolor.Thisworkingmethod is verypainterlybecausevery fewareas are critically

defined.All the areas are suggested and have awonderful, expressive quality.Working in thismanner,youwillbesurprisedhowmuchof the finishedworkcanbeleftasisbyconcentratingondevelopingtheareasthataremostimportanttodefiningyour interpretationof the scene.This approachworks equallywellforfigureandstill-lifeworks.

6AddMoreLayersofColorandTextureFromadesignstandpoint, thepaintingisfullyresolvedat thispoint.However,several areas are only the undertone, so add more layers of pastel to them.Remember,iftherelationshipoftheelementsworks,thenhowmuchcolorandtextureyouaddtothepaintingisyourchoice.Becarefulnottomakestrokesandhuesthatdistractfromthebalanceofthepicture.

7PlayUpLightandColorContrastswithPainterlyStrokesThis detail shows the dynamic contrast of value and color around the bush,which is the center of interest. Play up the sharp contrasts of thin darks andthick,opaquelightsinthelightoftheground,thedarkbranchesofthebush,andthe color contrast of the blue shadow and the orange of the sunlit earth. Thiscombinationofelementsaren’tfoundanywhereelseinthepainting.Notice how suggestive pastel these strokes are. None of the elements are

exactlyrendered;theyaresuggestedwithexpressivemarks.Thisisthepainterlyapproach.

8Finish,ButDon’tOverdoItAt this time you can feel comfortable calling the picture done. Adding morewould be less suggestive and painterly andmaymake the painting busywithstrokesandedgesthatdon’tenhanceyourimpressionsofthescene.I’mpleasedwiththedynamicsofthepicture,suchasthevibrancyofthestrongred-orangecomparedtothesofterhuesintherestofthescene.

Whiletheredsareunnaturallyintense,thisistheexpressiveideathatIhadfor thepicture. Itworksbecause thepainting’sotherhuesenhance the redanddon’tcompetewithit.

O’KEEFFECOUNTRYPastelonsandedpaper18"×18"(46cm×46cm)

PASTELDEMONSTRATION

LuminousColor

Painterlypastelpaintinguses theapplicationof theoverallmassesofcolorwiththeadditionoflayersofcolor.Thecolorshouldnotbeblendedbyrubbingwith fingers or a stump as this would reduce its luminosity. As an opaquemedium,subsequentlayersareappliedusinga“softtouch.”Themoreyoupaintwith pastel, themore youwill learn the touch required for each brand as it isusedtobuildlayers.

Materials

PASTELS

A large selection of hard pastels •A full range of hues and values inmediumandsoftpastels

SURFACE

Warm-graysandedpastelpaper

OTHER

Softcloth•waterormineralspirits

PastelValueGroupsThesefourvaluegroupsofhardpastelsareusedfortheearlystagesofthis

picture.Thedark-middlevalueof the shadowedcliff andwater are the largestshapes;farmorecolorvariationsforthemareselectedthanfortheothermasses.Thisprovidesalotofcolorvariationandinterest.Inlessimportantmasses,useoneortwohuesofthesamevalue.

1LocatetheThirdsandDrawtheBasicShapesDivide the sanded pastel paper into thirds, then begin drawing in the mainshapes.

2CreatetheAverageColorReferenceUsinghardpastelstokeepthelayerthin,laydownsomeaveragecolorreferencefor where you want to take the painting. Because of the intense yellowreflectionsinthewater,youcanusemanywarmtonesinthecliffandtheywillstillworkasashadowplane,since theyarecoolerand less intensenext to theyellowinthewater.

3UseaClothtoSoftentheFirstLayerRub in the hard pastel undertones rather than using a liquid solvent orwater.This will let the paper color show through the finished painting (whereas theliquids would more fully cover the paper’s tone). Here, paper becomes theunifyingcolorharmonyofthepainting.

4EstablishtheExtremesEstablish the lightest light, the darkest dark and the most dynamic edge, and

begin todefine thedarks.Usehardpastel in thedarkareas tokeep them thin,then set them aside to paint withmedium and soft pastels for the rest of thescene.Youmayneedtouseoneortwohardpastelstocreateaccents.

5FinishtheWorkNotice how much of the paper color still shows in the finished picture. Theyellowtreesarethemostintensecolorbuttheystayinthedistancebecauseofthelimitedsuggestedform.Comparethattotheshadowedcliff,whichhasalotofsuggesteddetail.Thisisaccomplishedwithedgesandvaluecontrasts.Early layers of colormust be allowed to show through in places so that, as

pastel is added, a feeling of depth and atmosphere is created and adds to thepainterlyfeelingofthework.

SHADOWLIGHT


USINGTONEDPAPERIchooseatonedpaperforhowwellitsuitsthepicture.Otherwise,Iuseawhitesheetandselectively tone it for themain shapes in theunderpainting stage. Inthis painting, thewarm tone andmiddle value of the paper is ideal for all the

earthtonesinthescene.

ACRYLICDEMONSTRATION

LayeringTransparentColor

Acrylicsdon’tholdbrushstrokesandtextureaswellasoils,andthesurfacecanbecomeflatandboring,sobuildaslightlyaggressivesurfacebyprimingthesurfacewithseverallayersofgesso.

Whencombinedwith transparent layersofcolor,a littlepaletteknifeworkandthetexturedpaintingsurface,theresultsachievedwiththismediumcanbeverysatisfying.My goal here was to capture the warm glow of the late afternoon and the

dramaticwarmlightonthelimestonecliffcontrastedbythedarkfoliage.

Materials

ACRYLICPALETTE

CadmiumYellowLight •YellowOchre•CadmiumYellowMedium•CadmiumOrange•BurntSienna•QuinacridoneRedLight•QuinacridoneRed • Quinacridone Crimson • Ultramarine Violet • Cobalt Blue •ChromiumOxideGreen•PermanentGreenLight•TitaniumWhite

BRUSHES

Sixormore inexpensivehogbristlebrushesrangingfromno.2 tono.16•no.6syntheticflat•no.2syntheticround

SURFACE

Cottoncanvasprimedwithseverallayersofacrylicgesso

OTHER

3partsmattemediumto1partwater•plasticpaintingknivesinvarioussizes•spraybottlefilledwithwater

ACRYLICTOOLSPlasticknivesarebettersuitedtoacrylics.Sincethebrushesstandinwateralotofthetime,traditionaloilpaintingbristlebrushesswellandlosetheirshape.Useinexpensive, student-grade bristle brushes to prevent ruining your good oilbrushes. Their flexibility and shape when swollen with water is perfect forpainting with the transparent, watery acrylics. They create ragged dry-brushedges. Ifyouneedmorecontrol,usea syntheticbristlebrush,whichwon’tbeaffectedbythewater.

WorkAreaSetupWhen I paintwith acrylics, I setmy palette of colors in themiddle along

with mixing trays and a container of matte medium. Plastic palette knives,brushes,awaterwellandaspraybottleareallwithineasyreach.Ifyoucan,clipasourcephotonext to theeasel. Ialsohadonhanda12"×

18"(30cm×46cm)pastelofthesamescene,whichIusedforcolorreference.Trykeepingyourpalettebelowthepaintingwhetheryou’reworkingoutdoors

onlocationor in thestudio.OnlywhenthecanvasisverylargedoImovethepalettetotheside.

1PrimetheCanvasandRoughintheBasicShapesStartwitha cottoncanvascoveredwith several coatsof acrylicgesso.Since Iapplyacrylicsinthinlayers,creatingabrushtextureinthepriminglayersofthegessoaddstothequalityofthepainting.Allowthegessotodrythoroughly,thenroughlylocate theshapeswitha thinmixtureofwarmcolor.Youmaywant tolocatethecanvascenterfirsttoaidtheeffectivelayoutoftheshapes.

2EstablishColorandValueRelationshipsUsing a large bristle brush, work a lot ofmedium transparent colors into themain shapes. Try to keep all the color transparent at this point, and focus onestablishingthevalueandcolorrelationshipsforthepainting.Theexactnessof

thedrawingisnotimportant,soyoucanpushandpulltheedgesofthemassesasthe painting develops. Overlap the edges of the shapes a little.White canvasshowingattheedgesoftheshapescanbedifficulttoeliminateatlaterstagesofthepainting.

3PlacetheExtremesIdentify theextremeswithin thepictureand resolve them. Iplaced thedarkestdarkunderthebushesatthewaterlineandthelightestlightonthecliffface.Themostintensecolorisonthesunlitpartofthebushes,andthemostdynamicedgeisbetweenthecool,darkmidtoneofthebackgroundandthewarmlightestlightofthecliffface.

4WorkinThinLayersWork all over the surface in thin layers of paint. This is similar to the pastelprocessbecause thedrypigmentofpastel and the fast-drying layersofacrylichavemoreofthecolorscumbledanddraggedintothemass.Keepvaluescloseandcolormixesanalogoustobuildtheselayersandtoavoidmakingthemassesbusy.

5ApplyOpaqueColorAsthepaintingapproachescompletion,usetheedgeofaplasticpaletteknifetoapplymoreopaqueareasofcolorinthewater’shighlightsandtothecrevicesofthecliffface.Thebenefitsofthebrushtexturefromthegessolayerareevidentinthewater

under the bushes where a fairly dry brush of opaque color has been draggedacrossthedarkofthewater.Thisisaneasyandeffectivetechniquetousewhenyou’reworkingwithamediumthatdriesquickly.

ACHIEVINGLUMINOUSACRYLICSThebest thingaboutusingacrylics is that theydryfast.Theworst thingaboutusingacrylicsisthattheydryfast.Asfunnyasthatmaysound,it’strue.Acrylicdriesquicklyonthepalette,sokeepthepalettesprayedwithdistilledwater.Tokeep acrylic from drying too quickly on the painting surface, mix the colorstransparentlyandcreatesoftedgeswithabristlebrush.Withthesesteps,youcan

achievealuminositysimilartothatofpastel.

6CarefullyApplyOpaquePainttoFinishSelectively apply opaque acrylic paint only when the painting is in its finalstages.Acrylicpaintbynaturedriesveryflatandopaque.Thelightshadesalsotendtodarkenastheydry,sousecautionwhenapplyingthefinalopaquecolors.Remember, to be most effective, a good painting always has one elementdominating another. With acrylic paintings, I prefer to have the transparentlayersofcoloroccupymorespaceanddominatetheaccentsofopaquepaint.

EVENINGCALM

Acryliconcanvas24"×36"(61cm×91cm)

WORKINGWITHPLASTICPAINTINGKNIVESWhenworkingwiththinacrylicsitcanbehardtopickuppaintwiththeedgeoftheplasticpaintingknife.Trymixingtheacrylicswithalargebristlebrushandusethatbrushtoloadthepaintontotheknife.Thenapplythepainttothecanvasusingtheknife.

ACRYLICDEMONSTRATION

WorkingwithanExpandedPalette

AnadjustmentI’vemadetotakeadvantageofacrylic’squickdryingtimeistoaddmanymorehuestomypalettethanIusewithoils,andlayerthemonthepaintingwithlesspalettemixing.Thismethodissimilartoworkingwithpastels.Becauseofacrylic’squickdryingtime,it’sveryeasytoreworkittoadjustcolor,valueandedges.Ifindthisconstantadjustingaddstothepainterlyqualityofthismedium,soIplantheseadjustmentsaspartofmypaintingprocessandnevertryto hit an edge or contour in one shot, except at the endwhenworkingwith aplasticpaintingknife.

Materials

ACRYLICPALETTE

CadmiumYellowLight •YellowOchre•CadmiumYellowMedium•CadmiumOrange•BurntSienna•QuinacridoneRedLight•QuinacridoneRed • Quinacridone Crimson • Ultramarine Violet • Cobalt Blue •ChromiumOxideGreen•PermanentGreenLight•TitaniumWhite

BRUSHES

Sixormoreinexpensivehogbristlebrushesfromno.2tono.16•no.6syntheticflat•no.2syntheticround

SURFACE

Cottoncanvasprimedwithseverallayersofacrylicgesso

OTHER

3partsmattemediumto1partwater•plasticpaintingknivesinvarioussizes•spraybottlefilledwithwater

1LocatetheMasseswithCorrectAnglesWhenlocatingthemassesofbuildings, it’s important toget theanglescorrect.Oncetheproperanglesareset,youcancutlooseandstartpainting.Proportionscanbeadjustedasthepaintingprogresses,butyouneedtoknowtheangles.

2PaintAverageColorsandValuesinThinLayersEstablish the average color andvalueof eachmain shapewith thinwashesofacrylicpaint.Acrylichues tend todry flat, sokeep themixture thinandbuildtransparentlayers(similartopastels)tocreateluminosity.

3EstablishtheExtremesNexttofillinginthemasseswiththecorrectaveragecolorandvalue,accuratelyestablishingtheextremesoflight,dark,colorandedgeismostimportant.Theseare your guides for painting the picture. Use them to compare all your colormixtures and brushstrokes. You can use the most beautiful and expressivepainterlystrokes,buttheymustcomplementandnotcompetewiththeextremesyouestablished.Iusedastrongred-orangeforthesunlightontheroofandcontrasteditwitha

transparent blue in the building’s shadows. This set up a theme ofcomplementarycolors.The field ispaintedwitha lotoforange topickup thecolorfromtheroof.Eventhoughthiscolorharmonyisthethemeandideaofthepainting,it’sthecontrastofthewhitebarnagainsttheshadowsideofthehousethatcreatesthemostdynamicedgeandcenterofinterest.

CONCEPTSOFTHEPAINTERLYAPPROACHRegardless of the unique characteristics of your chosenmedium, the conceptsbehindthepainterlyapproachremainthesame:workthintothick,darktolightandtransparenttoopaque.

4AddtheFinishingTouchesInthefinishedpaintingIusedalotofopaquecolorinthefieldtocontrastwiththe transparentshadowhuesof thebuildings. Iapplied theseopaquecolorsbydrawingaplasticpaletteknifeacrossthesurfaceinthedirectionofthefurrowsofthefield.Thebrokenedgesoftheopaqueacrylicsuggestthequalitiesofthesolidnessoftheearth.Theyalsocontrastnicelywiththethin,transparentdistanttreesandshadows.Thesky,althoughalight,opaque-lookingmass,ispaintedinaseriesoflayers

thinnedwithmattemedium.Painting it solidwith opaque acrylic colorwouldhavemadeittooheavyandnotallowedittheairinessitneedstoworkwiththerestofthepainting.Noticealsohownothingwasaddedorchangedtodetractorcompetewiththe

extremesestablishedearlyinthepaintingprocess.

PENNSYLVANIAHERITAGE

Acryliconcanvas20"×30"(51cm×76cm)

SEAFOODOilonlinenpanel18"×24"(46cm×61cm)

5BeyondtheFundamentals

Beyondthebasicpainterlyapproach, thereareanumberof techniquesyoucanusetoresolveyourideaforapicture.Somearebasedoncloseobservationsof natural happenings, while others are exaggerations that help you expressyourselfona two-dimensional surface.Painting is a seriesofchoices:what tosee,whattoinclude,howtorepresentitandhowtoexpressit.

BrushworkforthePainterlyApproach

Paintlikeasculptor.Thinkofhowyouwouldcarvetheformsinyoursceneifyouwereworkingthree-dimensionallyinclay.Thenusethebrushlikeaknifetocarvetheplanesoftheform.Strokesnotonlydescribetheform,butalsoexpressyouremotion.Don’ttrace

the contours of an object or shapewith the brush. Thatwill flatten the three-dimensional quality of the form and not represent the relationship to othershapes.A brushstroke should tell us about an object. Is it flat, round, horizontal,

vertical, smoothor textured?Think aboutwhat you are painting andhowyouwant toexpress it.Forexample,paint theflatplaneof thegroundwithmostlyhorizontalstrokes.Paint treesandbusheswithavarietyofangles tosculpt theform.Paint skieswithvertical strokes to suggestuplift and tocontrast the flatsolidnessoftheland.Brushstrokes can express emotion, describe form and add texture to a

painting’ssurface.Becarefulthatyoudon’tgetsocaughtupintheexcitementofpainting strokes that youoverdo it andmake thepicturebusywith strokes.Thebeautyofaboldstrokeishowwellitworkswithinthedesignoftheoverallpicture.Thinkaboutwhateachstrokeisdoinginrelationshiptothewholeandwhetheryouneed toexpressa shapedramaticallywithbold strokesorkeep itquietwithsoft,simpleones.Generally speaking, shadow areas are thin, soft andmysterious,while very

light areas are thick and opaque. That’s not to say that a shadow area can’tdescribeformwithstokes.Justdon’toverdoit.

BrushworkThatDescribesFormThebrushworkheredescribestheformbysculptingit.Thestrokesrepresent

theplanesofthesubjectratherthanfollowitscontour.Thickandthinstrokesofpaintaddtotheimpressionofrocksinlightandshadow.

CANYONWASH


EstablishingtheFlowoftheLandUse your brushwork to describe the flow of the land. Here the trees and

slantedhills arepaintedwithvertical anddiagonal stokes.The flatmeadow ismadewithhorizontalstrokes,whilethemountainfaceiscarvedtorepresentitsform.

MORNINGMEADOW


HOLDINGTHEBRUSHORPASTELFORAPAINTERLYEFFECTHoldingabrushorpastellikeapencilputspressureonthestroke,whichisOKintheearlystageswhenthelayersarethin.However,asthepicturedevelopsandthethicknessofpaintorpastelincreases,holdthebrushlikeaknifeandlaythenewpaintorpastelonthesurfaceofearlierlayersratherthendiggingintothem.

SculptedFormsThebrushstrokessculpttheroundnessofthetreesasifcarvingthemthree-

dimensionallyoutof clay.The strokeson theground lay flat,while the sky isexecutedwithmostlyverticalstrokes.

FALLRIVER


PAINTINGTHESKYIgenerallypainttheskywithverticalstrokeseventhoughthetransitionofcolorand value is horizontal from thewarm gray on the horizon to the deep coloroverhead.Theverticalstrokesadduplifttotheskymassandcontrastnicelywiththe random strokes of the trees and flat, horizontal strokes of the land. Thistechniqueismoredifficult,butworththeeffort.Buildtheskytransitionwithhorizontalstrokesandthenworkbackintothese

strokes,pullingthemupvertically.Wipethebrushoftenbecauseasyoupullthebrushupitwillpickupthedarker,richercolorfromtheupperpartof thesky,and you don’twant tomix that into the lighter, grayer part below. This takes

practice,butafterafewtimesyouwillbecomfortabledoingitanditwill feelperfectlynatural.

OILDEMONSTRATION

ThePainterlySky

Theprinciplesforcreatingapainterlyskyarenotmuchdifferentfromthoseusedforanylarge,simplemass;it’smuchthesameaspaintingalargefieldofgrassesorabodyofwater.Thereisatransitionofcolor,yourbrushworkmustrelatetothetextureoftherestofthepainting,and,iftheskyisaverylargemasswithinthepicture,youneedtoaddcloudsforvisualinterest.Asyoupaintclouds,noticethattheundersidesreflectthecolorsoftheland,

andthesunlitpartsshowthecolorof light.Clouds insunaregenerallydarkerandduller thansnowonamountaintop.Foryears Iwasconfusedwhen Iwastold to paint distant clouds with more yellow than close-up clouds since yousubtract yellow from objects to make them recede. (Youmay have heard thesame statement.) I finally realized that a close-up white cloud is cleaner andbrighter thanone in thedistance,and justaddingwarmcolor toawhitecloudwillmakeitrecede.IsuggestusingYellowOchreratherthanapureyellow.Also, dark storm clouds are never as dark as the shadows on the land, and

cloudsaresoft-edged,eveninadramaticsky.

Materials

OILPALETTE

CadmiumYellowLight•CadmiumOrange•BurntSienna•PermanentAlizarin•CobaltBlue•UltramarineDeepBlue•Viridian•Titanium-ZincWhite

BRUSHES

Nos.6,8and10hogbristleflats•no.2hogbristleextralongfilbert

SURFACE


OTHER


1DividetheCanvasandPlacetheMainShapesUsingawornno.6flatandpaintthinnedwithmineralspirits,dividethecanvasinthirdshorizontallyandverticallytoplacethemainshapes.

2FillintheMassesOnceyou’recomfortablewiththesizeandplacementofthemainshapes,fillin

themasseswith thinmixtures of the average colors and values.When that iscompleted, evaluate the relationships of the entire scene and establish theextremesofcolor,valueandedge.

3ConcentrateontheMajorShapesUsing the averaged masses as a point of comparison, concentrate on themountain, sky and clouds. Repeat the colors of the mountain’s shadows andsunlightinthecloudstounifythesemajorareas.Cloudsinsunlightarenotlighterthanthesnowonthemountains,whichare

alsoinsunlight.Thiseffecthastodowiththesolidnessofthesnow.Also,whiteisnot justwhite; italwayshasa tintofcolor. Inascenesuchas this,white isdependantuponthesesubtlecolorshiftsinlightandshadow.

4FinishthePaintingIfthecloudswerejustaswhiteasthesnowonthemountains,theywouldflattenthespaceanddetractfromthemountain,whichiswheretheviewerissupposedtolook.Cloudsdonothavethedenseopaquenessofsnowandwillnotreflectlightassharply,sotheywillappearslightlydarkerinsimilarlight.Unifythecolorthroughoutthepaintingwithdarkeryellow-greensandviolets

intheforeground.Noticethateventhedarkestshadowsinthecloudsarelighterthantheshadowsontheland.

TRANQUILILLUMINATION


ThreeSourcesofLight

It is obvious in landscape painting to focus on the sunlight. However, formany scenes themost interesting light comes from something else. There arethreesourcesoflighttopayattentiontowhenpainting:

1.Theoriginallightsource

2.Reflectedlightfromotherobjects

3.Thereflectionofthesky

Thereasonforseparatingthetwotypesofreflectedlightisthatbasicreflectedlightcanbeanycolorbasedonwhatiscausingit,whilethereflectionoftheskyisalwayswhatevercolortheskyis.Thelightoftheskyreflectsontothetopofshadowedobjectsandilluminates

cast shadows.Cast shadowson thegroundonlyget illumination from the sky,whichistheprimaryreasonshadowslightenastheymoveawayfromtheobjectscastingthem,allowingmoreskytoreflectontothem.The shadow must contain the same color as the sky. All too often I’ve

observedstudentstryingtoputpurpleshadowsintoapaintingwithabluesky.Youmustmaintain thecolorrelationshipbetweenskyandshadow:Ablueskycallsforablueshadowandapurpleshadowneedsapurplesky.Thecolorofcastshadowsisalwaysamixoftheshadowedlocalcolorandthe

colorofthesky.Themoreneutralthelocalcolor,themoredistincttheskycolor.Forexample, ifyoulookatashadowcastontoalightgrayconcretesidewalk,youwillseetheskycolorverydistinctly.Reflectedskycolorongreengrass,ontheotherhand,isnotasobvious,butitisthere.An upright or overhanging object such as the edge of a roof takes on the

colors of its surroundings in sunlight. The stronger the sunlight, the morenoticeablethereflectedlightcolors.Imaginetryingtopaintoutdoorswearingared shirt. Standing close to the painting, that red would reflect all over thepainting and influence the color mixtures. When you step back to view thepainting,theredwouldbegoneandthecolorwouldlooktotallydifferent.Thesamekindofreflectiontakesplacethroughoutthelandscape.

Lookforthesereflectedlightstoaddinteresttoanotherwiseflat,dullscene.Thegroundreflectedupontotheundersideofanoverhangingroofcanoftenbewarmandsaturatedincolor.Adark,shadowedhorizontaltreelimboftenhasabeautifulwarmreflectedlighthittingitfromthesunlitground.

SkyReflectionsIn thiswinterscene, the flatplaneof thesnowreflects theblueof thesky,

while the snowon theupright pine tree catches thewarm sunlight.Thewarmsunlightisreflectedontotheshadowsideoftheaspentree,whichappearsmoreintensethanthesunlitsnowbecauseofthesaturatedshadowhue.

WINTERREFLECTIONSOilonlinenpanel12"×9"(30cm×23cm)

WarmReflectedLightIwas attracted to this scenebecauseof thebeautifulwarm light under the

rooflinereflectingfromthesunlitground.

MINER’SCABINOilonlinenpanel8"×10”(20cm×25cm)

LightandCoolContrastsThe dynamics of the warm afternoon sun are contrasted by the cool sky

colors reflected onto the barn roof. The light on the silo is reflected onto theshadowedroof,andtheshadowsideofthesiloiscoolerasitmovesawayfromthewarmhueoftheground.

WILDFLOWERSUMMERPastelonsandedpaper12"×16"(30cm×41cm)

BacklightingIn thisstronglybacklit scene,youbecomeawareof thewarmsunlightand

darkshadows.However,allthreesourcesoflightarerequiredtomakethescenedynamic.The sky is clear and its color reflects stronglyonto the scenewith acoolhuethatcontrastsnicelywiththewarmsunlight.Theuprightshadowplanesaredullandneutralinhue.Thedynamicsofthescene,therefore,arenotjustthecontrastof lightandshadow,butalso thewarmlightand thereflected lightofthecoolsky.

CONTRASTSOilonlinenpanel30"×40"(76cm×102cm)

BEAWAREOFWARMSANDCOOLSFor themost part, it is easy to say that the sky is the source of light and is,therefore,thelightestareaofthescene.Butthatisnotalwaystrue.Light-coloredbuildings, rocks, sand and snow are all exceptions, so evaluating the sky’srelationship to shapes in the scene is critical. I can’t even say that trees are

alwaysdarkerthanthesky:take,forexample,ayellowfallleafagainstthedeepblue of the sky. So, study the relationships you see and don’t rely on anyformulasforpaintingthesky.

TheColorofLight

Thecolorofthelightsourceissomethingmanyartistsoverlook,astheygettooinvolvedwithpaintingindividualelementsanddon’tthinkenoughabouttherelationshipsbetween them.I’veseenpaintingswithyellowlight inoneplace,pink light inanotherandcool light inyetanother,yetallwere litby thesamesource.Asolutionsomeartistshaveforthisistodeterminethecoloroflightfortheir

paintingandpremixapileofthatcolor.Astheywork,theyaddthatcolortoallareasfallingwithinthelight.Thisisaviableoption,butIprefertojustbeawareof the color relationships, balancing the painting as it develops with colorharmony.Viewersperceivecertaincolorrelationshipsassymbolicofdifferent lighting

situations.Theyseeyellowlightandpurpleshadowsasmorninglight,neutralorwhite light as midday and orange light with blue shadows as afternoon oreveninglight.Thoughthereareorangesunrisesandyellowsunsets,theyarenotsymbolicofthosetimesofdayandyouneedtoconsiderthatifyouaretryingtocommunicateoneortheothertotheviewer.

MaketheLightingConsistentThewarmpinklightisrepresentedinallsunlitareasandiscontrastedbythe

cool hues of the shadows. In the morning or afternoon the sunlight has verynoticeablecolor.Makeitconsistentthroughoutthepainting.

CLEAREVENINGLIGHT


ColoredVariationsofLightThewarmyellow-orange light reflects into thewater, and since reflections

are not as high key as the source of light, the color ismore saturated.As theyellow-orangelightisfilteredthroughthedarktrees,thewarmhueofthelightmixeswiththecoolofthedarktreesandopticallymixestobecomeapinkglowthatcoolsasitmovesawayfromthesource.Althoughtheyaredifferentcolors,theyarevariationsandmixturesoftheyellow-orangesource.

EVENINGWETLANDREFLECTION

Oilonlinenpanel

30"×40"(76cm×102cm)

ControllingtheGreenLandscape

“I’veneverseenagoodgreenwithoutsomeredinit.”Idon’tknowwhofirstsaidthat,butitissoverytrue.IfirsthearditwhenIstartedpaintinglandscapesmanyyearsago,anditisonequotethatIoftenrecallwhenmixingcolorformypaintings.Itsimplymeansdon’tpaintgreenthatistoointenseorraw(unalteredfromthe tube).Manybeginners fall into this trap.Theyfind itdifficult tomixgreens,sotheyresorttobuyingvarioustubesofgreenhuesandthenusethemastheycomefromthetube.Ifyouarestrugglingwithgreen,youaremuchbetteroffremovingitfromyourpaletteandforcingyourselftomixitfromyourothercolors. I am always amazed at how dull and brown a colormay look on thepaletteandhowgreenitappearsinrelationtootherhuesonthepainting.When you look at the colorwheel, green represents nearly one-third of the

area from yellow to blue.Youmay encounter landscapes that are virtually allgreen—the grass, hills and trees—with the sky being the only part with adifferentcolor(althougheventheskycolorisveryclosetothegreensectionofthecolorwheel).Paintingwith just thisonecolor family isvery limiting.Thechallengeinpaintingsuchasceneisaddingcolortoexpressyourfeelingsforit.There is no reason that a warm green area in sunlight cannot have color

variationsintotheredtoorangerange,aslongasitstillreadsasbeingawarmgreenarea.Similarly,on thecool sideyoucanpush thecolor accents into thecool violets and still have an area read as a cool greenmass. It’s amatter ofbalance.Keep the value and color temperature consistentwithin themass andyou’llbeamazedbyhowfaryoucanstretchthecolorsaroundthecolorwheelandaddexcitement toanotherwiseboringgreenscene.Makesuretoestablishthecorrectcolorfortheshapeandthenaddthevariationstoexpandtherangeofhues.There are timeswhenpainting the family of greens fromwarm to cool and

darkto light isall that isneededtoexpressyour interpretationofascene.Themoodof such a scene is best expressedby limiting the color.However,manytimesseeingthis limitedcolorfamilydoesnotexpressyourfeeling.Don’t juststick to the green family.Withmore confidence, youwill learn toworkwiththesegreenaveragestocorrectlyrelatetothescene,andalsotoexpandtheuseofwarmandcoolcolortoatleasttwo-thirdsofthecolorwheel.

ExpressiveGreensThis scene stayswithin the local color family of green. It is expressed by

controllingtheintensityofthegreenhuesfromwarmyellow-greentocoolblue-green.Usingwarmandcoolcolorrelationshipsandvaluesarecriticaltomakingagreen scene like thiswork.This rangeofhues expressesmyattitude for thesceneandIdidn’tfeelitnecessarytostretchthecolorfamilytoofararoundthecolorwheel.

SUMMERGREEN


PASTELDEMONSTRATION

AddingVibrancytoaGreenScene

Don’teverfeellimitedbythelocalcolor.Useitasastartingpointtoexpandthe rangeof hues that express your feeling for the scene.Many times a greenscene is best controlled with an underpainting of complementary colors thatmixeswiththegreensandhelpscontrolandaddvarietytothem.Thiscancreatealevelofexcitementyouwouldneverachievebysimplyusingthegreensthatyouobserve.TherehavebeenmanytimesthatIhaveusedthiscomplementaryapproachanddecidedtoleavethatcolor.Yes,youcanhavearedtree,aslongasthevalueandtemperaturerelationshiptotherestofthescenearecorrect.This demonstration adds color vibrancy to the green landscape by using a

largerrangeofwarmandcoolcolors.Thisapproachisoftenusedtoaddcolorvarietytoanotherwiseboringgreenlandscape.

Materials

PASTELS

Aselectionofhardpastels•Awidevarietyofmediumandsoftpastels

SURFACE

Sandedpastelpapermountedonmuseumboard

OTHER

Mineralspirits•stiffbristlebrush

1BeginwithWarmColorandLocatetheCenterStartthispicturewithawarmcolorthatindicatestheplacementandrhythmoftheverticaltrees.Locatingtheexactcenterofthepaperwillaidintheplacementofthetrees.

STARTWITHAWARMCOLORIuseawarmcolortoindicateshapeplacements,usuallyabrownishred.Ineverusecoolhueslikegreen,blueorvioletbecausetheycancreateamuddylookiftheyshowthroughthestrokesinthefinishedpainting.

2ApplyHardPastelsMany timesadarkobjectagainsta lightonewill createa transitionalglowofcolor,sochoosehardpastelsthatexpresstheextremecontrastofwarmandcoollight. In this lateafternoonscene, thegreen treesagainst thedarkskycreateared-violet glow. Underpaint the trees with red-violet to emphasize this effect.Underpainting captures this glow through the layers of color and expands thecolorfamilywithinthescene.

3BrushonMineralSpiritsAsmineralspiritsareaddedtothehardpastel,theydarkenandblendtogethertoform simple masses of color and value. As the mineral spirits evaporate, thecolor lightens towhatwasoriginallyused,modifiedby thehuemixedwith it.Keep theedgesbetween shapes soft anddon’t leavehard separationsorwhitepapershowingbetweenthem.

4EstablishtheExtremes

Establish the extremes of the scene in the soft undertones. The trees are thedarkest dark, the sky the lightest light and the edge between them the mostdynamic.Themostintensecolorisinthesunlitgrasses.

5DeveloptheLightWith the extremes established, begin adding the blue-violet radiant light tobridgethestronglightoftheskyandthedarksofthetrees.

6PainttheSkyPainttheskynegativelyintothevioletmassesofthetrees.

THEHORIZONTheskyonthehorizon,whereitisviewedthroughmanyatmosphericparticlesreflecting light, isverydifferent inappearance fromtheskydirectlyoverhead,whereweseefeweratmosphericparticles.Thiscausesthehorizontobelighterand to takeon the color of the atmosphere.On thehorizon, the sky is alwayswarmerandgrayerincolorandlighterinvaluethantheskydirectlyaboveyou.Themorewelooktowardthesun,thewarmertheskyis;themorewelookawayfromthesun,thecooleritis.Sowehavemanyfactorstoevaluatewhenpaintingthesky,nottheleastofwhichishowitrelatestotherestofthepainting.

7AddWarmandCoolHues,TextureandExpressiveStrokesAddthewarmandcoolhuesofthetrees.Thenaddtextureandcolorvariationsaswellasexpressivestrokesofpastel.

MAINTAININGCOLORHARMONYTomaintaingoodharmony,addcolorvarietyandpushthehuesfromtheirlocalcolorasthepaintingprogresses.

8FinishwithTransformingGreensThisordinarygreensceneistransformedintoanexcitingvibrationofwarmandcool color. The exaggeration of color stays within the correct value andtemperature relationships. Although it is still mostly green, this exaggeratedcolorcapturestheexcitementIfeltforthedynamicafternoonsunlight.

LAKESIDELIGHT


CreatingDepth

As the land recedes in the distance, the colors appear less saturated andvalues and edges less distant. What you see is the light reflecting off thehumidity, dust and pollution in the atmosphere. The more of these elementspresent,thegreaterthegrayingandhazeyousee.Givenenoughdistanceevenonaperfectlyclearday,allcolorandvaluewill

eventuallymergeintoalightgrayvoid.Ioncesawthiseffectwhilehikinginthemountains above Santa Fe, NewMexico (mywife was there to witness it aswell). It was a beautiful, crystal-clear daywith very little humidity, and, as Ilookedwest frommy 10,000-foot (3,000m) elevated vantage point, I saw theperfect blending of the land and sky into a light mid-gray. It was a magicalmoment.Itwasn’tanythinglikethedistanceweareusedtoseeinginourday-to-dayobservations.Thiswastheoryproven.

SeparatetheBackgroundWhenworkingona two-dimensionalpainting surface trying to represent a

three-dimensionalworldwith light and atmosphere, envision a veil separatingthemiddlegroundfromthebackground.Asyouviewthedistancethroughthisthin veil, the color is less saturated, and the value and edges are less distinct.Nevertakeahuefromthemidgroundtothebackgroundwithoutalteringit.Evenifthatseparationisonlyafewfeet,maketheseparation.Onewaytoaccomplishthisisbymixingthehuesoftheuprightmidgroundareaswithpurecolorfromyourpalette(nowhite).Thisisnotalwayspossible,buttrytodothisfirst.Thatway,assoonasacolormovesbeyondthemidgroundandyouaddwhitetoit,it’slikeplacingitbehindtheveil.

Usethelightcolorsinsteadofwhite.This concept applies to the shallowspaceof still lifes andportraits aswell.

Thereisadifferenceofhue,valueandedgebetweenthenoseandtheears.Itisnotextreme,butwemustpaintit.Remember,youaretryingtorepresentathree-dimensionalworld on a two-dimensional surfacewith the limitations of color,valueandedges.Asyou look into thisveil of light-reflectingparticles, yellow isdiminished.

You can do this on your palette by mixing a yellow-green and then mixingseveral piles of color variations from this, eachwithmore cool gray and lessyellow.Youwillseeanimmediaterecessionofcolor.

KEYSTOCREATINGDEPTH

Asyouworktowardthebackground,remember:•Darksgetlighter.•Lightsgetdarker.•Edgesgetsofter.•Colorgetsdullerandgrayer.•Everythingistryingtobecomealight-middlevalueofgray.

DiminishtheUseofYellowThis is an exaggeration of the loss of yellow as color recedes, but it does

dramatize theeffect.Allcolor in thedistance iscoolerandgrayeras it isseenthroughlayersofhaze.

RABBITBUSH


PAINTERLYCLOUDSCloudsarealwaysquestionable.Doyouneedthem?Whatwilltheyadd?What

kindshouldyouinclude?Theycanbeanythingfromsoft-edgedwispstolarge,heavymasses.Theycanbreakupthemassofthesky,orbethecenterofinterest.Cloudsarealsoagreatopportunitytomovecolorfromthelandintothesky.

OILDEMONSTRATION

SuggestingDepthandAtmosphere

Inthefollowingdemonstration,thestrongestcontrasts,thelightestlightandthecenterofinterestareinthedistance.Byusinglessintensecolorandaddingwhite to thepaintmixtures, themountains andcloudswill appearverydistantfrom the middle-ground trees. All of the middle-ground upright trees aresaturated color without any white paint. Every color in the distance of thispainting, however,will havewhite added to it, creating a sense of distance asviewedthroughlayersofatmosphere.

Materials

OILPALETTE

Cadmium Yellow Light • Permanent Alizarin Crimson • UltramarineBlue•MixtureofTitanium-ZincWhite•ChromaticBlack•MonochromeWarm•MonochromeCool

BRUSHES

Nos.6,8and10hogbristleflats•no.2hogbristleextralongfilbert

SURFACE

Oil-primedlinenonpanel

OTHER


1LocatetheMajorMassesUsingwarmcolorthinnedwithmineralspirits,generallylocatethemainmasses.

2EstablishtheAverageRelationshipsandtheExtremesWith the line wash as a guide, establish the average color and valuerelationships,andthentheextremesofvalue,colorandedges.

3CreateDistanceAt thisstage, thedistantcloudsandmountainsare, for themostpart, finished.Hadthecolorandthedarkvaluenotbeenestablishedintheunderpainting,youwouldnotunderstandhowcool,grayandsoft thecolorof thedistanceshouldbe.Noticehowsimilarthevaluesarewithinthedistantmountains.Contrastsofcolorandvalueincreaseinobjectsclosertotheviewerbecausetheyareviewedthroughlessatmosphere.

4CompletethePaintingAs you finish the painting, do not add white to the upright trees in theforegroundtoemphasizethespacebetweenthemandthemountains.Repeattheskycolorsintothesnowatthebottomfrontofthepicture.Thecoolgraynessofthemountainscontrastswith thesaturatedwarmcolorsof the trees tocreateastrongsenseofdepth.

CLEARINGSNOWSTORM


PeopleandAnimals

Peopleandanimalsmakeforinteresting,painterlysubjects.Inadditiontoallof themood,colorand lightingfeaturesofa landscapepainting, theactionsofthesubjectpresentarangeofnewpoeticandexpressivepossibilities.Askyourself, “Will thepaintingbeabout thepeopleoranimals,orare they

merelyanelementofthescene?Aretheyfeaturedinaparticularenvironment,oristheplaceunimportanttotheiraction?”Onceyoumakethisdetermination,you’llhaveasolidideaofhowtoevaluatetheirshapesinthecomposition.Scale thefiguresandanimalscorrectly.Theyshouldlookliketheycouldgo

into adooror behind a fence. If youmake the figure too small, the treeswillseemgigantic.Proportionsarealsoveryimportant.Manyartistshaveatendencytopaintheadstoolarge,whichmakesthefigureslookchildlike.Thinkabouttherelationships.Aswithafeaturedtreeorrock,agroupofpeopleoranimalsshouldconnect

andmergeso thatonly theedges thatdefine themassoractionare important.Like buildings or trees in the landscape, they need to connect to the earth, sodon’t put anyhard edgesbetween their feet and the earth.Usedefining edgesonlywheretheyseparatefromthebackgroundorsky.If a figure or animal is just a piece within a large scene, you should be

concernedonlywith its shape,not its features.Youdon’tneed to see theeyesand nose of a small distant figure to know what it is. It is more exciting tosuggest it than to tell thewhole, detailed story.Practice painting the ideaof afigureoranimalwithsimpleshapes.Icannotemphasizeenoughtheimportanceofpaintingapersonoranimalin

thesamemannerastherestofthescene;thinkofthemabstractlyasshapesofcolor,valueandedges.Ifyouthinkaboutthemortheirpartsforwhattheyare,youwilllosetheirbalanceasanelementwithinthepicture.Tomakesurethatafigurefeelslikepartoftheworkandnotpastedontop,handleitinthesamewayastherestofthepainting,usingthesameamountofdrawing,gestureandedgecontrol.

Simple,AbstractBackgroundAswithafigurestudy,usethesuggestionofsurroundingvalueandcolorto

enhance the subject andnot distract from it.Agood abstract design is alwaysmoreimportantthandetail.

DOGDAYS


ControltheFocusAswiththefigureandlandscape,keepthebackgroundpoeticandsuggestive

sothatthemainfocuswillbewhereyouwantit.Allcowsarenotcreatedequal,and theedges, color anddirectionareused to focusattentionon themainonedrinking.

THECROSSING


FocusontheMainFigureandUseSoftEdgesAs with a landscape, accent the main figure and allow the others to suggestactionandsupporttheprimaryinterest.Makesuretoconnectthefigurestothegroundbyusing soft edges.Otherwise the feetmayappear tooheavy,and thefigurewillfloatabovetheground.

BELLBOTTOMS


PainterlyTrees

Theoldsayinggoes“Ifyouwanttoknowhowmanyleavestopaintonthetree, lookat the sky.” Inotherwords,a tree isnotdescribedby its leaves,butrather by its contour and form. Again, shape, value and color are far moreimportantthandetailinexpressingasubjectsuchasatree,bush,rock,animalorperson.Treeseitherhaveadominantmasssuchasthesolidtrunkandheavybranches

ofasummeroakorthelightairinessofabare-branchedwintertree.Thesummertreeispaintedasalargemassofaveragecolorandvalueintowhichyouaddtheskyholes,whileyoupaint themassof the sky for thewinter treeandadd thesuggestion of the branches into it. Always squint at the subject and paint thedominantmass.

ThePainterlyTreeSquint to find theaverageof the largemasses. Ignore the small skyholes;

theywillbeaddedtothemassofthetreeasthepaintingdevelops.

FocusontheMassPaintthemassoftheleavesasaformthesamewayyouwouldapproacha

cloud,rockorbush.Thetreetrunkhasavarietyofstrokestoexpressitslengthand roundness.Warm reflected light from the sunlit grasses reflects onto theoverhangingbranches.

TEXASSLOPE


AspenTreesUnderpaintingIna scenesuchas this,withmany thinverticals, it isvery important tobe

awareofthenegativespacesbetweenthetrees.Placetheminsuchawayastocreatearhythmofspacing,andbecarefulnottoduplicatethesizeoftreetrunksandnegativespaces.

SuggesttheTree’sFormThe funofpaintinga light,neutralobject suchas the trunkofanaspenor

birchtreeisseeingallthereflectedcolors.Asthetreegrowsupward,itreflectsthe color of the sky, while the lower part catches the reflected colors ofsurroundingtrunksandleavesinsunlight.Thefallisparticularlydramaticwithallthereflectedcolors.Don’t just trace thevertical contourof the tree;pull some stokes across the

trunktosuggesttheroundnessofitsform.It’snotflat,sodon’tpaintitthatway.Andremembertosoftensomeoftheverticallinesofthetreetrunks,ortheywillappeartooridged.Thisistruealsoforsubjectslikefencepolesandutilitypoles.

YELLOWTREES

PaintingWater

Waterisafascinatingpaintingsubject.Itcanbethefeatureofthepainting,adeviceforbringingtheskycolorsintothelowerpartofthepicture,adynamicdesignshapewithinthestructureofyourwork,oranycombinationofthethree.Youcoulddevoteyourcareertopaintingthevariationsofitasasubject.For the everyday artist, water is just another element of the landscape that

showsupinscenesfromtimetotime,likerocksandtrees,soyouhandleitlikeanyotherobject.Studyitsrelationshiptotheothermassesofthescene.Itisjustanother shapeofcolor,valueand texture.Themoreyoupaintwater, themoreyouwillunderstandhowtohandleit.Water is different from other landscape elements, though, because it is

sometimes reflective, sometimes transparent, sometimes runningorcrashing inwaves.Herearesomepropertiesofwatertohelpyouunderstandwhatyousee:

•Youeitherlookthroughwatertowhatisbeneathit,oryouseethedensityof clouded water, reflections on the surface, or white, churning water.Alwaysstartbyaskingyourselfwhichoftheseyousee.

•Onanovercast,grayday,lookforasubjectwithstrongvaluecontrasttocreatedynamicshapes.Whenpaintingawave,watchforthetransparentqualityas thewater thinsclose to the topof thewavecompared to thedensityofitsbase.

• Reflections in water are never as sharp and clean as the object beingreflected, even inwhat appears tobe aperfectmirror reflection.Darksare always lighter, lights are darker, colors duller and edges softer; thereflectionsof thewhitewater arenot as light as thewhitewater itself.The reflection is directly below the object creating it. The slower andcalmerthewind,themorepronouncedthereflectionswillbe.

•Waterreflectswhat’saroundit,sodon’tintroduceanewcolornotfoundintherestofthescene.

•Whenthewindbreaksthesurfaceorthewaterencountersanobjectlikearockorlog,theripplereflectsaglareoflight.Thisoftenhappensalongtheedgeofalakewhereyouwillseebothaverydarklineandthelightglare.

•Asmallwaveorrippleispartiallyreflective,showingtheskyandlandinthedistanceaheadofyou.Itisalsopartiallynonreflective,allowingyoutoseeintothewater.Thisiswhereyouseethecolorofthewaterorthe

objects beneath it. For example, you may see the rock that water iswashingoverorthemudonthebottomofthestreambed.Inanotherpartoftherippleyoumayseethesunorlightglaringonthewater’ssurface.Andinwatercrashingatthebottomofrocksorinawave,youcanseethebrokensplashesreflectinglight.

With theseconcepts inmind, lookagainandaskyourselfwhatyou seeandwhy.Evenamuddyrivercanbebeautifulfromthecorrectanglewhenyouseethe sky and landscape reflected onto its surface. Are there rocks causing thewatertomoveandchangedirection,orisitcalmandtransparentorreflective?The brushwork for water is pretty straightforward. Paint reflections with

vertical strokes,and the flat surfaceof thewaterwithhorizontal strokes.Paintcascading water like a sculptor, carving the form three-dimensionally with abrush.You need fewer edges than you probably think you do. I often use theedge of a painting knife to create a horizontal highlight on the soft, smoothsurfaceofabodyofwater.

StudyMovementandColorStand and watch a wave as it rolls onto the shore. Notice that every few

momentsasimilarwavewilloccurwithaheight,color,whitewaterandpatternsimilartothefirstone.Evenwithsmallwavesinabayorlake,youwillseethisrepetition,whichgivesyoutheopportunitytostudythewaves’form,valueandcolor. The painting above illustrates this idea. Notice how the use of strongcontrastandedgesarevitally important togiving thissimplesceneacenterofinterestandgooddesign.Keep thedarkerpartsof thewater thin and transparent, andmake themore

activeareas in the lights thickandopaque, justasyouwoulddo for the lights

andshadowsinatypicallandscapeoftreesandgrass.

THEBLUEWAVE


PASTELDEMONSTRATION

ReflectionsinWater

One of the joys of working in pastels is the flexibility they allow incombiningvariousmediums.InthefollowingdemonstrationIusedpencilandawatercolorunderpainting.Iestablishedabaseoflocalcolorandcorrectvaluetoshowthroughsubsequentlayers.Thisissimilartousingsolventtodissolvehardpastels, or painting a thin underpainting of oil or acrylic. The finishedappearance isa littledifferent,but theconcept is thesame.Iencourageyoutoexperiment.Thewatercolorunderpaintingwaschosenforhowthefluidcolorwouldlook

showing through the waves. Other mediums would create a more solid look.Thisisaminorpoint,butitismyreasonforchoosingthisapproach.

Materials

PASTELS

Awidevarietyofmediumandsoftpastels

WATERCOLORPALETTE

Cadmium Red Light • Cadmium Orange Deep • Aureolin Modern •ManganeseViolet •UltramarineBlue •MayGreen • Cobalt Turquoise •Prussian Green • Hooker’s Green • English Venetian Red • Van DykeBrown•Payne’sGrayBluish

BRUSHES

Inexpensiveno.10hogbristlefilbert

SURFACE

Sandedpastelpapermountedonmuseumboard

OTHER

HBleadpencil•sprayfixative

1StartwithaDrawingStart this paintingwith a lead pencil so you can use strong darks in the firstlayer. Spray itwith fixative to strengthen the darks andminimize the layer ofwatercolormixingwiththepencil.

2DeveloptheMassesDevelopthemasseswithwatercolorwashesonthesandedpastelpaper.Therichcolorandtransparentcharacterofwatercolorwillaidincreatingthemoodofthesubject.

3CapturetheReflectedColorsBeginlayingonthepasteltocapturethecolorsreflectedinthewater.Donotbeconcernedwith the edges at this point, but ratherwith capturing the effect ofdifferentcolorsreflectingonvariousplacesintherippledwater.

4DeveloptheTrees,GrassesandSkyAsyoubecomecomfortablewiththeripplesofthewater,start toworkaroundthepaintingslowly,developingthetrees,grassesandsky,alwayswithaneyetoreflecting those elements. Work back and forth between the object and its

reflection.Iftheyarepaintedasseparateelementsyouriskthemnotrelatingtooneanother.

5CompletethePaintingWhen you observe rippling water, the waves closer to you are more visible,allowingyou to see all the parts of thewave.When looking at distantwaves,you’llonlyseethepartofthemthatreflectswhatisbehindthem.Thesewavesshould be simplified into more solid reflections. It’s important to bring thereflectiondirectlybelowthesourcewithedgesthataresofter thanthoseofthesource. Remember that the darks will be lighter and lights darker and thereflectionsinwaterwillneverhavethesameclarityastheirsource.Inthiscase,thedarkercolorinthewaterismoresaturatedthanthegrassesandtreesinthebrightdesertsun.

OASIS

Pastelonsandedpastelpaper18"×24"(46cm×61cm)

ThePainterlyChecklist

Itishelpfultomakeachecklistandpostitinyourstudioorputitonacardthatyoucancarryonlocation.Wheneveryouarestuckorarenotsureifwhatyouaredoing isworking, refer to thechecklist anddoa self-critique for eachitem.Also,revieweachpointinafinishedworkbeforeyouframeit.

Concept/Idea.What idea ormood do youwant to convey?What strikesyourinterest?Whatdoyouwanttheviewertofeelaboutyourexperienceofpaintingthescene?

Shapes.Simplifythescenetothefewestnumberofshapespossible.Sixtoeight is ideal. These shapes are determined by their average color andvalue.Lookforopportunitiestolinkdarks,midtonesorlightstogethertosimplifythenumberofshapes.

Mostdynamicedge.Identifythecenterofinterest.Sometimesthesubjectdetermines this for you.Most times, particularly in landscapepainting,this is controlled by how you organize the shapes on the surface. It isoften what attracted you to the scene to begin with. No matter howsimilar the lengthofa tree lineagainst theskyora linealonga river’sedgemayappear,makeoneplacemoredynamicthantherest.

Extremes. These are the most dynamic elements in the painting. Evenwhenyouseesimilarareas,makeonedominantintermsofcolor,valueandedge.Forexample,thereisnothingwrongwithusingalotofintensecolor in a painting as long as one of the colors clearly dominates theothers.

Valuekey.Makesurethepaintingfitsoneofthesevaluekeys:low,middleor high. Add accents that cover the entire value scale from black towhite, but the overall picture should be dominated by one of the threevaluekeys.

Colorharmony.Idon’tworryaboutcolorharmonyuntilIgetintotroubleand the color is not working. Then I figure out which harmony(analogous,complementaryor triadic)mostcloselyfits thepicture,andthen adjust the colors to fall into that harmony. Nature has a way ofharmonizingcolorby itself. It isman’s influence thatusuallymesses itup.

Colortemperature.Inpaintingthereisalwaysadominantandsubordinatecharacteristictoeachelement.Determineifthepaintingismostlywarm

huesorcoolones.Itcannotbeequallybalanced.Coloroflight.Isitmorning,afternoonorevening?Don’tletthelocalcolorof the subject influence the color of the light—it should remainconsistent throughout. Too often this is overlooked, and we find pinklightinoneplace,yellowinanother,andsoon.Unifythecoloroflight.

Colorofcastshadows.Castshadows(asopposedtotheuprightshadowsonanobject)get their illuminationsolelyfromthesky.Therefore, theymustcontainthecoloroftheskydirectlyoverhead.Don’tshowavioletshadowwithabluesky.Theymustbeconsistent.Likethecoloroflight,thecolorofshadowmustbeaunifiedtemperatureandhueasaffectedbythelocalcolor.

Painting gesture/Texture.Make sure to unify the painting strokes andtexture.Youdon’twanttohaveasmooth,flatskyinaworkfullofboldand lively strokes of color. Itmust be consistent, so if you use brokencolortoshowafield,youmustthenusebrokencolorintheskyaswell.Inthatway,theentirepaintingfeelslikeitwasdonebythesameartist.Some areas can and should be more gestured and suggestive in apainterly manner, but the surface and scene should hold together as acompleteunit.

AFTERNOONCOLOROilonlinenpanel11"×14"(28cm×36cm)

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