Artist's Drawing & Inspiration - USA (2019-09)

62 ArtistDrawingandInspiration

demonstration

STEP FOUR

At this stage I established the full
intensity of the dark tones, using dry
washes of green, purple and red Pan
Pastels; and to define the darkest areas,
the Flinders Red Violet and Flinders
Blue Violet for the cooler areas. I
continued to block in and develop all
areas of the painting, starting with
the sky and working downwards.

STEP FIVE

I worked on the painting as a whole,
not spending too long bringing any one

area ahead of the others. Intensifying

the colours; defining edges, forms,

structure and detail of the rocks

and trees; working dark to light.

All the colours in the Northern

Territory seem to be ‘warm’ so to

bring the foreground into perspective,

I needed to exaggerate the redness

and warmth of the bare soil and also

keep the shadows ‘warm’ using the

Art Spectrum Flinders Red Violet.

I spray fixed at least once in this

stage, also keeping an eye on the paper

surface (it can only take so much

pastel before it begins to deteriorate).

STEP SIX

I had spent about two hours at the

scene and couldn’t stay much longer.

It was time to take a last objective

look to check a few important things:

Had I captured the essence of the

scene? Did the rocks look solid and

rocky? Had I made the reflective

surfaces of the rocks light enough?

Was the atmospheric perspective right,

with softer shapes and cooler colours

receding into the background?

I made the trees behind the

rocks greyer and cooler by putting

mauves next to the brilliant

greens, while keeping the foliage

delicate and translucent.

Was the aerial perspective right,

with the shadows flat on the ground?

Were the shadows consistent with

a light source from the east? It was

now nearly midday, and the sun was

actually overhead. It was time to spray

fixative, pack up and go home.

FINAL STEP

With the work in my studio, I

spent a long time (days) looking

and making minor adjustments.

In particular, I needed to raise

the tonal values – colours that

looked fine in the open air needed

to be lightened and brightened

to glow and look good inside.

Finally, I decided those black

Cockies really did need to be

recorded. This was ‘their place’.

They added life and interest ... and a

memory, for me, of their company.

REFLECTIONS

I often feel quite pleased with a

work just after I have finished

it. The self-critical and objective

assessment comes later, when I

have moved on and disengaged

from the work. Looking back on

this piece, I am inclined to think

that Step 5 had a semi-abstract

quality and freshness that was lost

in the finished version. Should I

have stopped earlier? Could I have

developed a beautiful paint surface

without going into so much detail?

Well, there is always next time. n

STEPS FIVE AND SIX