Our Home and Studio- the color
Tagged: landscape, Leslie Lee, Leslie Lee and Dennis Meiners Hummingbird home and studio, oils, painting lesson
Category: Leslie's Doings, Painting processes
The next day I was excited to get some color on this canvas, but before we get started I want to show you my new glass pallet and color layout.
The glass is an old bathroom shelf which is nice because it’s sturdy and has rounded edges. I backed it with kraft paper which is a good neutral background that allows me to see the colors I’m mixing without the distraction of old paint stains on the pallet. Because this is a new arrangement for me I wrote the color positions and made a spot of each color on the paper, then I just taped the paper to the glass around the edges. This limited color set up was suggested in a painting video and I thought I would try it. Clock-wise: Aliz Crimson, Cad Red Light, Cad Red Deep, Cad Orange, Cad Yellow Deep, Cad Yellow Light,(Rembrandt brand recommended for all the Cads. Do you agree?) Titanium White, Veridian, Cer. Blue, Ultramarine, Brnt Umber, Ivory Black at the bottom. The blob in the middle is Gamblin Gel Medium with some Gamblin Liquid Alkyd mixed in to help things dry a little faster.
Another good tip from the video: keep an old phone book handy to wipe off you palette knife. VERY efficient and saves on rags.
I liked the mood of the afternoon winter light…
…used a big brush and tried to keep the strokes loose and varied, moving from the shoulder instead of the wrist.
I did not like the hills in the backgound. Too green? Too dark?
I
Squinting at it upside down let me see the hard line between the sky and the hills…
…so I softened it and bingo! the buildings popped into focus. More tomorrow.
Fun to watch this process and to see what you’re up to in the day. Neat how much the buildings popped out after fixing the background. I never would have thought of that.