Tuesday, October 18, 2011

From Jersey to Florida

Today was stay in the studio and paint day. I needed a day to create with no interruptions. It's been difficult lately to have a span of time to really focus so since Kelli was able to open the studio for us today I was able to stay home where it's peaceful and quiet. Well.... quiet except for the Sopranos. I've got all the seasons on DVD so Tony and Carmela keep me company when I work. 


While the tv was taking me back to my state of origin (thankfully location is the only thing I have in common with the characters on the Sopranos) I was making a landscape from FL, the state I've called home for the last 39 years. Years ago I did a series of colored pencil paintings of Paynes Prairie. I felt like revisiting those scenes in a different way so I pulled out my references and my acrylics. My first step was to texture the canvas with Super Heavy Gesso and then I toned it with orange acrylic.

 After sketching in the basic shapes with a white charcoal pencil I started blocking in color on the background trees and foreground grasses. I love, love, love, painting landscapes on hot color backgrounds.

Adding sky and more foliage. I used some of the sky color to soften the greens.




Time for tree trunks and branches.


Finishing.... warming up some of the greens in the foreground, adding highlights on the trees and punching up the yellow in the foreground where the sunlight is coming through the trees. The icing on the cake is pushing the values in the darks and lights.

Overall, I'd say it was a good productive day. I'm ready to start on the next one.


3 comments:

Kelli said...

Really like this one. I'm glad you were doing something productive with your time!

Vanessa said...

WOW!! I absolutely lov how you've used the bright red paper ot you advantage. Normally I'm always told to stay away from what people term "screaming colours" in the underpaintins but you have managed to make it work wonderfully. Glad to hear and see your day was productive.

Carlynne Hershberger, CPSA said...

Oh no, I love those screaming colors! I like the soft greens of the landscape with just a bit of the color coming through to make it vibrate. This was acrylic done on a canvas. And.... thanks for the kind words.