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Liberty Farm
Objects in shadow and the cast shadows of object are valuable tools in depicting sunlight in a dramatic fashion.
This barn in Boothbay, Maine is silhouetted and in shadow. The shadows that are cast by the fence, trees and barn help portray the sunlight. They also show the contours of the land that they fall on.
It is vitally important to connect the darks to form shapes and keep them from being isolated.
I'll say it again: have plenty of pigment at the ready to make really dark shadows. Also, be bold in your application. If you have to go back over a shadow area, you'll lose some of the juiciness and purity of the paint. Don't be afraid! Put it down dark enough and then leave it!
I'm off for my summer in Maine. I may get to paint on the way, or sketch at some of my scheduled stops. I look forward to sharing the results of my painting effort throughout the summer. Stay tuned!
I sometimes use tree foliage on the edge of the painting to help frame the main subject. Sometimes a shadow will help frame. And sometimes using a building will help push the focal point back.
Often, though, students will believe that if an object is there and included in the painting, the whole object must be depicted.
In this painting of a boatyard, I've employed a boat on the left side of the composition to help frame the main boat. However, I cut off part of the boat. If the whole boat were included, I would end up with two focal points. In this case the boat on the left pushes the focal point boat back, and acts as a frame.
On the righthand side of the composition, I've also cut off the background boat. If the whole boat had been included, it would have acted as a pointer out of the painting.
It comes back to the concept of portraying shapes, not objects. Know what your focal point is and use shapes that do not compete with the primary subject.
Sky, trees, fields, and only hints of buildings. Landscapes depend less upon straight lines and more upon curved lines and irregular shapes.
In this landscapes size is important as well. The receding trees are smaller and less defined in the interior. I tried to vary the shapes of the trees in the foreground and concentrated on making them three dimensional by emphasizing the sunlit and shadow sides. And the foreground shadow keeps your eye from wandering off the bottom of the page.
I painted one summer in Cornwall, England. During the last part of my stay, I rented a car and drove around the Cotswolds and Wales. I spotted this little village in the Cotswolds and stopped to sketch it. But I just got around to painting it this morning.
I painted this in 45 minutes. Remember: You're not coloring inside the lines; you're painting! Except for the church belfry, the other buildings are only hinted at. So let your brush fly!
Almost every shape in this painting is a silhouette. If you get the silhouette of the object right, you'll find you don't need many details in the interior of the shape.
This is also another example of interlocking shapes. The buildings and the steeples interlock with the sky shape and make the sky an interesting shape.
Although I chose this scene in Littleton, New Hampshire because of the silhouetted shapes of the buildings, it needed some additional interest, so I added the crosswalk, some figures, and the bicyclists.
Very soon I'll be in the neighborhood of this scene. New England, here I come!
Painting architectural subjects can be quite daunting. The tendency is to try to put in every detail. The result is often a texturally overloaded rendering.
In this painting of the St. Louis Basilica Cathedral in St. Louis, as usual, I tried to depict the major shapes: half circles, rectangles, and triangles. I did NOT try to fill in every window. A simple downward flick of the brush suggested the windows, and quick dabs and short strokes gave the illusion of decorative features on the façade of the building.
If your goal is to produce an architectural illustration, maybe you should include all the exact details. However, if your aim is to paint the architectural subject, reduce the number of details and merely suggest the ones you do include. The result will be much more satisfying.
For as long as I can remember, I've loved watching the Kentucky Derby. One year I was lucky enough to attend and sit in Millionaires' Row. But that's another story.
The easily identifiable twin spires of Churchill Downs are elegant and iconic. That was the inspiration for this painting. The receding buildings provided me with another opportunity for obliques. The line of horses form another. I also used silhouettes to describe the spires to eliminate the details and keep them in the background.
"Dockside Café"
Horizontals are restful, verticals are stately. Obliques are energetic and can act as pointers. I employ them as often as I can.
In this painting the most obvious obliques are found in the triangular umbrellas. Looking at the cast shadows, they form a broken oblique. The rooftops and the bow of the far boat are also obliques. All of them direct your eye to the figures in the foreground.
Look at the previous post and you'll see more obliques at work.
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