These two are from last week. I checked the weather (rain late in the day) and then went down to Bryan Park to get some work done on location. So naturally, it started to rain as soon as I got there. It was sporadic enough to take some reference shots though. The front moving in from the north made the light very interesting, dark blue-grey to the north and bright and warm to the east. It made for some really intense color.
The photos I took were absolutely terrible even though I bracketed each shot. So I had to rely on memory and let the painting
go where it wanted.
I'm actually pleased with the way the light turned out on both.
That's very rare.
It may be due to trying a different approach. I started both with a notan on white stock, making sure to have only 4 values. I also left many large areas untouched after the first pass of color. The best example of this is the ground plane of the first painting. I laid down 2 or 3 cooler neutrals and then dragged some warm green over the top and stopped there. No fussing! It's flat and comes forward in space, no further information is required.
Wonderful, as always, Dan.
ReplyDeleteInteresting that you used a 4-value notan for the second one, since the road, azalea bushes(?) and bulk of the trees look to be about the same value. The road, its subtle shadows and that pale yellow-gray patch of light are what elevate this painting. That, and the use of compliments, of course.
We don't get the same profusion of blooming things out here in the southwest, so your spring paintings always remind me of how beautiful it is in the east at this time of the year.
True, the second painting pretty much goes against Carlson's Guide, and I am a firm believer in those rules. However, in this particular situation, I felt like bending the rules.
ReplyDeleteWhat I've really noticed is that there is far more image falling within a tighter range of mid-light value or halftone in the light, and much less area dedicated to shadow, and yet the different planes are still identifiable.
I think this will need some further exploration.
Although I do love the southwest, I don't think I could live without 4 distinct seasons. There is something interesting about each, even when it's all just green or (dare I say) snowing!
I don't think I articulated this very well in my first comment, but what I was trying to say was that these paintings work very well in spite of not having a very broad range of values :). It's really about the colors and patterns. Much of Degas' work was exactly the same.
ReplyDeleteI refer to Carlson regularly, and always absorb something new with each pass. Great book that should be on every landscape painter's bookshelf.
And, rules were meant to be broken, or bent, but one must know how to do it properly for the result to be a success ;).
Ok - you guys are sending me back to the bookcase for some more review!! I love paths...always! and this one is really nice. Spring in the mountains (Blue Ridge) is like an adult easter egg hunt...so loving the colors which you have captured beautifully here.
ReplyDeleteSonya: I think you articulated yourself just fine, and I think it was a good observation which got me thinking.
ReplyDeleteI broke the rules to achieve an effect, by why do I think it still works? I felt it had something to do with the large areas of compressed value. In looking at paintings done by artist I really admire, I noticed a similarity. Three of the paintings were basically dominant mid-value, and the fourth dominated by shadow. In each, the large masses are separated by no more than 10-15% value shifts within, and more often only 10% . They do include small accents of lighter and darker values, but these are minimal and don't breakup the large mass. Contrast appears to be achieved by placing smaller masses of 20-30% (either lighter or darker value) next to the main mass.
I keep looking at my finished pictures thinking they are still too gray, even though I have a wide range of values. I'm wondering if that's due to the values within my masses not being compressed enough, thereby diffusing the contrast? Sound logical to you?
Thanks Cindy, glad you stopped in.
These two paintings are beautifully painted. I especially love the first one. The trees and the those beautiful colorful bushes...so realistic! Well done!
ReplyDeleteDan, Both are beautiful and depict spring so well: cool, airy, and with the feeling of good things to come. Your comments and Sonya's have given me some food for thought.
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