Addition/Subtraction

Motif #1 @ Pratt's Island

This is another iconic subject that artists on the Boothbay peninsula often paint-- so often that we refer to it as the Motif #1 of the area.  It was even the subject of the advertising postcard for an exhibit of my paintings at a local gallery.

This time, however, I took many liberties with the old standby.  I eliminated a building on the left, thinking that if it were included, it would put more weight and emphasis on that side of  the painting than I wanted.  Also, in reality, the treeline is much higher.  I lowered it so the background wouldn't claim so much attention.  The transition to the sky area also lessened the importance of a larger, dark background shape.  The value contrast stayed near the focal point building as well.

Next, the additions.  Once I determined those two shapes, it became apparent that they needed to be broken up by something. Since I already had the pilings in the foreground, I decided to repeat the verticals in the background.  The logical placement of those verticals was directly over the building in the focal area, thus acting as pointers.  For the same reason, I moved the ladder so that it, too, would point to the little building.

Other additions:  The white rock in the foreground and the pilings that emerge from it were put there to create a white shape that breaks up the horizontal shoreline, and lets the piling lead up to the white of the building on the far left.  Imagine the dark reflections extending to the left edge of the page and you'll see that the shape of the water would have been a dark, uninteresting rectangle.  That oblique line also echoes the oblique line of the buildings, a repetition that was needed to contrast with the dominant horizontals and verticals.

This is a rather lengthy explanation of the components of this composition.  But I want my readers to know that what appears to be a random placement of the elements of the painting was really a series of deliberate decisions.  

Bottom line:  Don't always be tied to the realities of the scene.  Add, subtract and do everything you can to come in aid of the area you find most attractive.

Looking Around

                              Driftwood at Hendrick's Head Light

Hendrick's Head Lighthouse is often a subject of my paintings.  But, not only I, but also most everyone who paints it includes the beach.  This time I decided to try a different foreground.

I had often walked around  the area for a different viewpoint. This time instead of seeing this bush as blocking the view of the beach, I decided to make it and the driftwood the primary subject.  The lighthouse becomes a locator instead of the main subject.

Try looking past or around something that acts as both a frame and a major subject of your painting.

The Hazards and Rewards of Plein Air Painting

Day 4 of my watercolor workshop in Boothbay Harbor.  The class went to Newagen's Town Landing.  It was overcast, and halfway through my demo, it started to shower.  I kept painting, though, but you can see the raindrops on the painting.  After I finished, we went to lunch, and returned to the dock. The sun came out and the students had good painting weather once again.

While I was painting, I told a story about a man who emerged from the trees on the island across from us about 15 years ago.  He was pushing a refrigerator and finally flipped it end over end down a ramp to the float at low tide.  He then put it in a dinghy, rowed across the cove to the Newagen Inn dock and proceeded to flip it end over end up the very steep ramp.  I said it was "ridiculous.  Just then I heard a male voice behind us say, "Well, not as ridiculous as someone painting a watercolor in the rain."  Turns out it was Refrigerator Man himself!  We all got a good laugh and funny memory out of that!

Also, the red house in the background was owned by Margaret Hamilton, the Wicked Witch of the West in "The Wizard of Oz."

Join us next September for more stories and laughs like this one!

Breaking Loose

After demonstrating my fairly conventional style to my class, I felt the need to break out of that approach and paint a subject from memory.  

Three days before there had been a glorious sunset over the Harbor.  So while my students were painting, I decided to paint a quick rendition of that scene.

First, I pre-wet the sky.  The orange came first, and was very quickly followed by the purple clouds that set off the orange.Then I pre-wet the water and dashed in some of the same colors.  Then I painted the island, the house and the trees.  Bingo!  Finished in half an hour.

Some times it feels good to break free of your typical style.
Speed can sometimes convey energy, so I like to just let the colors fly!

Entering the Painting

                           
                                                        Hendrick's Head Beach

There are several ways that the viewer enters the painting space.  First, a pure color that stands out.  In this case, the lighthouse roof is red and is not repeated, so it grabs attention.  

Second is value contrast. The trees on the far shoreline are dark near the lighthouse's white.  

Third, pointers help the eye travel towards the lighthouse.  The wall curves around the foreground and mid-ground and ends up pointing at the lighthouse.  The clouds also seem to point down at the lighthouse.  And obviously, again, the treeline slopes down to the lighthouse.  

I also try to keep the viewer's eyes away from corners at first, so I try to find ways to eliminate light shapes there.  The foreground shadow was put there for that purpose.

This was Day 1 of my 2019 Watercolor Workshop in Boothbay Harbor, Maine.  More to come!

The Power of White Shapes

White is an eye-grabber.  Planning where and why to leave the white of the paper is essential in directing the viewer to the important part of your painting.

The size and shape of the white area should be planned out before you begin painting.  In this painting of Hendrick's Head lighthouse, the white area is small and interlocks with the midtone and dark areas.  The white of the lighthouse and the keeper's house leaks into the white area of the bay behind it to help form an interesting, uninterrupted white shape.  

The beach foreground is a midtone which is dark enough to contrast with the white shape.  The dark rocks in the foreground also help in the transition from dark to midtone to light.  

Scattered whites, dragged sparkles and isolated small whites are not shapes.  Be careful not to fall in love with these saved whites.  Too many of these popcorn whites only serve to confuse the viewer's eye and detract from the more important areas of more defined white shapes.

Value sketches will help resolve the question of where to place the whites in your composition.  They will also help you avoid popcorn whites.