Developing Large Paintings from Plein Air Sketches #2

Picking up from the last blog; this image shows the early block-in of color on a 16" x 20" canvas. Notice first that I chose a warm color for the initial wash. I don't like painting on a white canvas. It seems that when I have painted on white, I'm continuously fighting the surface to make sure that the white doesn't show through. When you lay down an initial wash, it eliminates that problem and creates a background color that can easily show through in several spots to tie the rest of the colors together; creating a color harmony. This image shows the block-in of colors in the shadow areas of the painting which includes the back rock wall with rocky tiers and snow piled on each tier. Also the willow bushes get their block-in of color. You can see that the base color for the willows is purple; not black, brown, green or yellow ochre. As I mentioned in the last blog, the color mixing for all studio paintings is subject to the color as seen in person and captured in plein air paintings...DO NOT TRUST PHOTOGRAPHS. One more thing; I took the willow block-in color and used it in the shadows of the rocks and bushes on the right side of the painting. This helps to create a color unity throughout the entire work.

This image is the finished painting with possibly a few minor tweaks to the stones in the shadows along the frozen river bank, (the 4 stones are too evenly spaced), I'll probably add some variation in the studio on Tuesday.  Notice the open water in the river; it's darker than the rear wall. Also notice the bush reflections are darker. The base color for the snow is a warmed-up reddish white (never use pure white....never). The sun lit bush closest to the river and the ice next to it are the brightest parts of the painting. This is intentional, it becomes the focal point. I designed this painting so that your eye leads in by following the open water, (left to right whenever possible). Then the eye travels up the background snow to the left, then right to the upper right corner, then follows the sunny rock wall down to the bushes in a clockwise fashion, then loops again.

Do you have comments, suggestions, questions? Let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.