2020-08-01 Artists & Illustrators

TAKEAWAY TIPSAL’SFOUR-POINTPLANFORSUCCESS

1

Taketimeto

planoutthe

colourrelationships

relativetoedges,

chromatic

intensities,scales

andtheoverall

elementsof

creatingaerial

perspective.

2

Problemsolve

andcritique

yourworkasyou

go,usingthevisual

qualitiesdiscussed

inthearticleto

helpyouto

makesuitable

adjustmentsand

modifications.

3

Try to consider

the overall

depth relationships

in a composition,

rather than always

focusing on

painting interesting

details or tackling

favourite areas.

4

Evaluate the

painting as a

whole periodically

throughout the

entire painting

process, especially

the depth created

by colour and

its related

relationships.

move spatially in relationship to each

other by virtue of the elements

described above, the size or scale of

those strokes, marks and shapes are

also important.

Larger strokes of colour generally

come forward visually compared to

smaller ones. Areas of colour that

have clearer, bolder shapes and

edges will bring the foreground closer

to the viewer while smaller, softer

ones will seem to recede into the

distance. These concepts are

especially valuable where the artist

wants a strong and clearly defined

foreground, middle ground and

background.

Textures are also modified by these

ideas of scale, edge, colour intensity

and so on. Colour details in the

foreground would have to also be

sharper and clearer in stroke, while

details in the distance would be

smaller and more generalised by

comparison.

Broader, larger, more distinct

strokes in a foreground are often the

solution to bringing the perspective of

a landscape continuously towards us.

Without that effect, the lower area of

the image might drop off and the

illusion of perspective will be lost,

regardless of whether the foreground

is bright or dull.

4

EVALUATING AS

A WHOLE

Evaluating and critiquing one’s own

work is one of the most difficult things

artists have to do. If you are

emotionally invested in your work, it is

often hard to see when a composition

is off the mark, for example.

A good strategy is to stop

periodically, maybe about a third of

the way through a painting and take

a hard look at the overall big

relationships. It is here that you can

identify weak areas in colour depth

and its relationships with other formal

elements like temperature, chromatic

intensity, edge differences, stroke

sizes, corners of the composition,

and foreground, middle ground

and background.

If the colour is not creating a first

impression of depth, then revisions

need to be made immediately.

Sometimes it is just a matter of

strengthening the chromatic intensity

and clarity of the foreground. This

tends to be the single most

problematic area of colour, value and

texture for most artists.

We tend to focus on that part we

like the best, like the beautiful band

of pale Ultramarine Blue along the

horizon. That luminous stroke will

have less meaning if the foreground

is weak or the depth of the colour and

its related relationships are neglected.

In painting where depth and aerial

perspective are needed, colour must

be built in relationship to edges and

strokes, chromatic intensity to

neutrality, size and clarity of areas

and the image gauged and balanced

and evaluated as a whole.

http://www.algury.com

ABOVE Al Gury,

Summer

Landscape, oil on

panel, 30x30cm

The high chroma

foreground stands

out in contrast with

the neutral colours

further back.

Artists & Illustrators 65