76 Artists&Illustrators
PAINTING SKIES
applies if the sky is to be the focus,
the landscape should be designed
accordingly. Both sky and what is
below are inextricably linked.
Clouds and cloud shapes can be
useful in leading the eye around a
landscape painting. In The Walker,
Harford Moor, note how the clouds to
the left of the horizon are shaped like
a signpost, designed to lead the eye
towards the lone walker on the
moorland path. The patch of blue sky
at the top of the painting does much
the same thing as it points down
again towards the figure.
It might be worth noting that a fair
degree of artistic licence was used
within the sky to achieve the correct
pictorial balance. An understanding of
skies and clouds makes the invention
of non-existent skies much easier to
achieve and likely to be more
believable when seen by the viewer.
One of the beauties of skies is that,
unless it is a completely clear day,
they are very rarely uniform. Note how
in Winter on the Moor the tone within
the sky changes across the painting at
the skyline. To the left, the sky at the
horizon is darker in tone when judged
against the lighter-toned moor. The
result of this contrast is that the
snow-covered moor stands outagainst the sky. To the right, the roles
are reversed with the moor darker and
the sky lighter, helping to bring a
sense of recession and distance
to the painting. Just as within the
landscape itself, so diminishing
perspective and aerial perspective
both also apply to the sky.
This is often particularly noticeable
with fair weather or cumulus clouds.
These towering fluffy white clouds,
often with flat bottoms, will appear
to be large and well-defined when
overhead. However, those same
clouds seen in the distance, closer to
the horizon will seem to diminish in
size, appearing much smaller and
often seeming to merge together.
As a result of aerial perspective,
these distant clouds will also appear
to become gradually greyer, the effect
often becoming more apparent the
closer the clouds are to the horizon.
Even cloudless blue skies are
subject to aerial perspective. The
purer, more intense colour will be
seen directly overhead, with the
muted, greyer blues graduating
down towards the horizon.
One should be careful when
painting a simple blue sky, however.
If the wrong tone or a strong hue is
used, the sky itself can appear to beas solid as a wall, popping too far
forward and completely overpowering
the landscape.
By carefully modifying the size,
colour and tone seen within clouds
instead, the canny landscape artist
can bring a sense of space and
volume to the sky.
Dramatic, vibrant sunsets can be
one of the most inspiring types of sky
to paint, but they also can be one ofABOVE Rob Dudley,
Winter on the
Moor, watercolour
on paper, 28x45cm