photo: Palouse Landscape : Jennifer Carrasco
Landscape transformed:Watercolor
Jennifer Carrascco
Note: I refuse to be dictated to by a photo, and I expect my students to be the same way. It's just there to prime the pump.
Theme: Trees in winter....Xmas landscapes....glazes and values
Discuss values....look at Kim’s snow pictures. Then look at development of snow scenes...kid’s books. Usually cool colors, but not always. For fields and drifts of snow, keep your glazes subtle and soft on the edges. Leave white for where the light is brightest (by day) and pale bluish for moonlight areas. Many children’s books are illustrated in water color. Get in the habit of analyzing how artists did the work.
Plan on tissue paper a sketch of a landscape with trees and land......look at pictures. Choose one to do. Think of Grouping trees (show example). Take a landscape photo and cover it with snow. You can do close ups but be sure to include simple areas snow areas as well as trees. Look at my chart of grouping, values, and development of a snow picture.
To start, use tissue and lightly draw out your shapes. On back of tissue, “color” in where the lines show through with the sides of your pencil . Then trace onto your taped paper.(big piece...at least 15” by 10”. ) Trace lightly. Start Light, at the Top, Large, work from back to Front, Cool to Warm. Large to small.
Dark values on under part of branches.....very light values on snow...bluish or purplish shadows [and pale pinks and yellows if you want sunset effects or colored light effects for snow....otherwise LEAVE white.)Put some tracks in the snow somewhere...footprints, animal, ski, snowgo,ect.
Here's some of my charts to jog your memory.
Just remember. Start at the Top. Light to dark. Back to Front. Cool to Warm (or, in the case of snow...warmer than blue...more purple red, more umber. With snow, paint an area with clean water first and stroke an area in the middle of the "watered"
area so the color will be disbursed and soft at the edges. Keep colors very light and transparent for the snow areas. Avoid "knife" edges.
And here is a breakdown of glazes for a summer landscape....same sequence....light to dark, top to bottom, etc. THE OUTLINES ARE JUST DIAGRAMS. DON'T PUT THEM IN YOUR PAINTINGS!! ACK! NO!! QUELLE HORROR! PUHLEASE!
The sequence, roughly, is...1.Paint all the "blue outlined" area a pale green and paint sky your blue of choice. Let horizon line "bleed" a bit into the sky.
2. While first areas are still a little damp, paint all of black outlined area a soft, slightly more intense green. Drop in a few areas of the same value of umber and raw sienna. 3. When layer number 2 is still a little damp, paint the red outlined areas a slightly more intense yellow green and spatter or pick out a few areas of umber or more intense dark green.
4. Use umber and green to pick out yellow outlined shapes and float some variations of intense greens and yellows over pale green field areas. AVOID FLAT SHRIEKY GREENS !!! Alway mix a little umber, blue, even red with your true greens before you apply your greens to give them character and true panache. (Panache is good in almost anything...right?)
OK. Keep calm and carry on. Teach.
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