MASTERCLASS
- Avoid details
Even at this stage, I was still adding very little detail. With a size 6 brush, I instead began
to add more solid colour to the sky, keeping the brushwork loose with individual touches
of mixes made with Titanium White, Cobalt Blue, Cerulean Blue and Winsor Violet.
Having darkened the building, I added the windows with a simple brushstroke using
the square heads of the synthetic brushes. I also began dragging little touches of
various colours over the whole image to create a sense of unity.
- Think about definition
To give the distant trees a less-defined look,
I dragged a pale blue-violet mix across the
existing underpainting. I rubbed this gently
with my finger to blend it into the existing
colour. I suggested more detail in the centre
of the image with a few touches of colour
without being too literal. The masts of the
ship were painted using a size 2 synthetic
round brush.- Contrast your hues
I was unhappy with the colour of the roof,
so I dry-brushed a blue-violet mix over it to
tie it into the overall colour of the building.
I started to add small touches of colour to
the foreground foliage, which included the
introduction of a warm, Raw Sienna-
Cadmium Red mix for contrast.
Where the foliage meets the sky, I have
dragged one colour over another, with a dry
brush of undiluted paint, to produce a ‘rough’
edge, rather than creating a harsh silhouette.
- Finishing touches
I sharpened the highlights with pure Titanium White and added little flecks of various colours
all over the painting, alternating the direction of the brushstrokes. The far field was on a steep
slope, which meant it caught the light and so I painted it as bright as the foreground grass.
Still unhappy with the tonal value of the building, I darkened it with a mix of Cobalt Blue,
Winsor Violet and Oxide of Chromium, applied with a size 4 brush. More detail could possibly
have been added, but my aim was to produce a painting that encompassed a harmonious
range of colours, together with a loose and lively treatment.
Artists & Illustrators 47