Painting outside

I started this exercise in the autumn, ahead of the earlier exercise on expressive landscape, during a break in the wet weather and before the snow. In preparation I spent a few days sketching views as I walked the footpaths that cross the fields around my home village of Flamstead.

I finally settled on a location adjacent to Friendless Wood where a bench had been placed for locals and passing walkers to stop and enjoy the views. From this bench I prepared a pencil study in my A4 sketchbook and a watercolour study. The view I had chosen had diagonal lines created by the fields' boundaries and hedge rows together with receding power lines in the distance. These features should help to lead the viewer's eye into the composition of my picture.

The composition I created was loosely based on the "rule of thirds" and comprised elements of aerial perspective looking down into the valley in the middle distance. I liked the different textures created by the way the fields had been ploughed and the crops or grass were growing contrasting with the hedge rows/tree lines and man made structures (power lines). I wanted to express these variations to help enhance the feeling of space and distance.

Unfortunately, prior to returning to commence my acrylic painting in situ the weather changed again bringing more rain for several days. In order to progress this exercise I retreated to my studio with the studies I had prepared on site and attempted to reproduce the view starting with a colour study in my sketchbook.

At the time of my initial sketches the sky been fairly clear leading to frosty mornings. The hue was pale receding to a cool lemon/white near the horizon. The distant trees and power lines appeared a blue grey with the distant fields loosing their colour intensity. The sun was positioned above the top right of my view placing the hedge row in the middle distance in shadow and highlighting the brow of the field at the edge of the foreground as it fell away out of view.

I worked with a palette limited to ultramarine, lemon yellow, yellow ochre, cadmium red (dark hue) and titanium white. My first layer of colour enabled me to block in the whole view but with limited tonal variation. To strengthen the illusion of perspective I proceeded to lighten the background and parts of the middle distance and darken the foreground. I also defined the hedge rows and tree lines in a deep blue grey and started to differentiate tones on the small wood to the right of the view where the sunlight was catching the tops of the trees.

I took breaks between applications of paint to allow for drying and colour settling as the acrylics darken as they dry. I gradually adjusted the hues to increase the contrast between the lighter tree lines and fields in the distance from those in the middle distance. Working across the picture I also increased the level of detail in the foreground creating greater definition of the rough grass and ploughed field. At this point I added the power lines and telegraph pole.

As my first attempt at a rural landscape using acrylic paint, I was satisfied that I had managed to achieve some feeling of distance by varying the lightness and intensity of hue from foreground to background. I was disappointed not to have managed to complete the painting in situ but am motivated to try again when the weather improves. The result is less spontaneous and free than my watercolour study. Also my choice of colours was too limiting for this subject and could have been improved by adding a warm cadmium yellow and possibly another blue to increase the variety of mixed greens particularly in the foreground and to enhance the earthy hues actually visible in the fields.

I believe I could have improved the composition by adding more detail to the rough grass/wild flower area in the foreground and being more controlled with my rendering of the telegraph pole in the middle distance. Had I worked in situ the southerly aspect of the view may have caused problems as the sun moved across the sky changing both shadow/tones and the intensity of hues. The location was otherwise quite good being sheltered by the wood behind the view and because there was a bench available to sit on and lay out my materials. It is situated less than half a mile from my home in easy walking distance for carrying materials and supports up to about A2 in size.

Project Perspective - The Three Blackbirds

Using my village as inspiration for the linear perspective exercise, I prepared some sketches of a local pub, The Three Blackbirds, and took some reference photos so that I could continue working in my studio as the weather was not conducive to painting outside.

From my architectural training early in my career and subsequent years of sketching, I am comfortable drawing linear perspectives of buildings. Previously I have produced painted works in watercolour or pen and ink with colour washes. For this exercise I was keen to stay with acrylics to develop my skills with that medium. I, therefore, added an acrylic colour study in my sketchbook prior to setting out the composition on paper. Following feedback from my tutor, I continued to experiment with a limited palette of colours mixing as necessary.

Working in my studio, I sketched out the composition scaling up the drawing from my sketches and photo references. I chose to use the natural white base of the acrylic paper support onto which I blocked in areas of colour using light washes.

Once I was satisfied with the proportions and overall composition, I built up the image working across the whole painting. I took regular breaks as I added colour allowing the acrylics to dry and reach their natural hue and give me opportunity to step back and check the overall impact of the part I had been working on.

Reflecting on previous feedback from my tutor regarding the visual impact of backgrounds and foregrounds to the overall picture, I concentrated particularly on the visual quality of hues in the sky and road surfaces.

As the work progressed I increased contrast between light and dark areas to enhance the feel of depth and perspective. I also used the diminishing scale of some figures walking away into the distance to emphasise the the illusion of perspective.

I was reasonably satisfied technically with the outcome although I felt I had over worked the pub's left. However, the composition was fairly typical of the views I have illustrated in the past and did not stretch me conceptually as much I would like. If I paint this or a similar subject again I intend to experiement more with distorted/bent perspective, play with a nieve aproach and create an abtract or dream like illusion. 

Having painted St.Paul's Cathedral, in the last exercise, in aerial perspective I chose not to practise this approach again here.

From inside looking out

Exercise:  View from a doorway

After some experimentation and reflection with views from different windows in my home, I settled on looking out from my utility room. I thought this location would be easier to work from in terms of making a mess and it produced some interesting shapes and perspective challenges.



From initial studies in my sketchbook, I discovered that the light changed dramatically as the sun moved into view and surface colour modifications became significant following rain (a common occurrence during this exercise!). Working on acrylic paper support, I sketched out the view in situ then added washes to block out main areas of colour. I found that despite initial assumptions that I could paint directly from the view, I was too cramped so completed the study in my studio. Due to the strong sunlight and reflective effect of wet surfaces following showers, I discovered that I needed to add high percentages of white to the pigments used to illustrate outside surfaces. Similarly the framing created by the back door frame was cast in shadow and needed to be sufficiently dark to create sufficient contrast. I continued this exercise until I felt I had understood the impact of sun and rain on colour representation then stopped before producing a final picture.

Exercise: Hard landscape

A view I have often sketched is from the members room at Tate Modern looking across to St. Paul's Cathedral. This view has many challenges from a partially looking down aspect, to a complex bridge and reflective effects from the Thames.

I prepared some new sketches in situ whilst at Tate Modern for this exercise. Working from these sketches and photographs, I started by using a composition comprising a full view from Tate Modern.

The view was almost an elevational image of the north bank of the Thames with the Millennium Bridge bring the viewer's eye into the picture. This study gave me the opportunity to try out colour mixing using a palette limited to titanium white, ultramarine, yellow ochre, lemon yellow and cadmium red. Brush control to create vertical lines and fussing over small details were my biggest challenges.

Having played with this composition, I decided to experiment with a study of a part of the overall view. Going back to my sketchbook, I tried out a composition that focused in on the drum of St Paul's. I used pages in my sketchbook that already contained colour I had spread from the ends of paint on a previous palette.

I was happier with this composition so enlarged it onto an acrylic paper support. I started by trying to reproduce the effect of randomly spread colour as a base layer. This was not as spontaneous as in my sketchbook and looked a bit manufactured. As I built up my composition over the prepared support, I started to loose the earlier marks due to the application of thicker paint layers than the glazes used in my sketchbook study.

I worked with a limited palette of ultramarine, yellow ochre, cadmium red (dark hue) and titanium white. In order to bring the composition back to my earlier concept, I added yellow ochre and cadmium red to the sky. I found that I needed to add a relatively high percentage of white to the yellow ochre to achieve the whiteness of the stone which was reflecting sunlight. I also had to darken the sky adjacent to the cathedral drum in order to create sufficient contrast and a feeling of depth.

I am happier with both the composition and colour choices in this painting than in the two earlier examples. Despite being almost elevational in view and simplified in detail, I feel I have captured the atmoshere and scale of St. Paul's Cathedral compared to the buildings in the foreground whist expressing the feeling of warmth and depth I observed in the prevailing sunlight.