http://www.painters-online.co.uk artistMay 2020 29
PRACTICAL
sound, light, colour, drama, context.
The subject gives you a tool for
illustrating that feeling of atmosphere
and, as such, the subject doesn’t have
to be spectacular. Some viewers will
recognise what you are trying to get
across and others won’t, but to be an
artist who is looking for a reason to
paint, considering the subject matter in
this way means you don’t have to travel
to exotic locations for the perfect view.
It’s also worth considering your mood
and the time you have available. Don’t
attempt an overly complex painting
if you have little time or don’t feel
you have the concentration levels. It
is better to come away with a success
than many failed attempts. Working up
to larger, more complex scenes with
planning and realistic targets helps to
build confi dence.
Fundamentally, this is why I think
it is so important for the landscape
painter to work outside, in front of the
subject, for at least some of their time.
Inspiration, motivation and the thrill
and challenge of painting landscapes
must start outside next to the source.
Each trip brings new experiences and a
wealth of knowledge of light, behaviour
and form that will inform your studio
work, helping you to progress your
painting and, even, revealing more
challenges to overcome.
A painting can be attempted for many
reasons: as a fi nished work, a sketch, an
information study or just because you
want to. Any studies you make outside
will be useful for larger work later on
with information on colour, tone and
handling.Sennen Cove
Sennen is a wonderful place with wide
views and cliff faces, which I have
painted before, but I wanted to get a
little closer with this study to appreciate
the small parts that make the whole
area so attractive. My demonstration
painting (below) was completed en plein
air and treated as a colour study above
all else. I had my 8 10in pochade box,and settled on a fl at rock on the beach
to work.
Working on the beach meant I
could hear the indistinct sound of
voices, families playing and people
enjoying themselves. It all blended
into an atmosphere of relaxation with
a backdrop of the waves crashing
rhythmically against the shore. This
type of experience, with the warm sun
on your back, makes it easy to connect
with your subject and live in the
moment. Everything around you feeds
into your experience which, in turn,
has an effect on your decision making,
enabling certain elements to come to
the fore and infl uence your painting.
When you paint something fi rst-hand
it becomes more of an experience and
you fi nd that you retain a lot more
information than a photograph can
provide. This, together with the subtlety
in colour and tonal range, makes
painting outside a valuable tool for
the landscape painter, even if work is
fi nished or created back in the studio.DEMONSTRATION: Rocks at Sennen Cove
u STAGE ONE
I worked on a board primed with a mix of
acrylic gesso and chalk powder to give a more
absorbent surface. Also, the white ground
would give the colours a fresh appearance.
I used a dark mix of ultramarine and burnt
sienna to mark out the composition roughly
using the edge of the No.6 bristle brush,
ensuring the tones didn’t dip too low. I spent
only a minute contemplating the position
of the rock and making the fi rst few guiding
marks. I then took a couple of reference
photographs of the surrounding area and the
subject
MATERIALS
� Support: MDF board primed with a
mix of acrylic and chalk powder
� Colours: titanium white, ultramarine
blue, cerulean blue, cadmium red,
chrome yellow, yellow ochre, burnt
sienna, viridian green
� Brushes: No. 6 bristle hog brush
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