This was week 1 for Jed Dorsey’s Mini Painting Challenge at Acrylic University. It’s a follow-along, using Dorsey’s reference photos and seeing how he paints from the reference. All paintings are done in 6×6 size.
Lesson 1 was called “Sunlight through the Trees”, and Dorsey uses an impressionistic style for the painting, which I attempted to imitate.
Over Black Friday, I bought access to a handful of online classes at Kara Bullock Art. One was the “Terrific Trees” class by Kim VanDerHoek.
I ‘m working on painting pine trees, so I can make some Christmas cards on a Christmas tree theme. The tree on the left was painted on a 6×6 canvas panel, and is based on Kim’s class (a follow-along).
The tree on the right was painted on a 8×8 black stretched canvas. The shadow of the tree is unpainted; I’m just using the black of the canvas.
Paint Week 2023 is going on this week, and the subject to paint is a kayaker on a river lined by mangroves. Although I’m working on a portrait tutorial by the same teacher, I took some time out to paint the landscape on a 9×12 canvas.
The subject didn’t particularly excite me; that’s probably apparent in my results. I find the value map helpful as a concept, but painting-wise, the burnt sienna underpainting shows through too much, which I don’t like. Maybe if I were using oils it would work better?
Finally had time to paint again after watching so much baseball — This is the finished work from the Patreon lesson.
(The photo of the completed painting was taken in a different room with only natural light coming in from southern windows; the other one was taken in my “studio” (dining room table) under the bright light of a work lamp.)
I’m continuing to work on this landscape. I painted over the first take of the yellow ochre to make it more golden, and I think the lighter green up front is too saturated/yellow, and I need to darken it.
What is left to do is the leaves on the tree, the flowers in the meadow, and the grassy definition of the path to the house.
Now that Halloween is over, I’m working on a landscape from PaintCoach’s Patreon site. This is in advance of his Paint Week (free!) that starts on November 6 (link to sign up is in his YouTube notes).
This one is on a 9×12 canvas, toned in Pale Umber, and sketched out in charcoal — rather than painted, because I’ve been watching the World Series, lol.
I completed the mountain valley abstract. The green grass in the front is not as de-saturated in real life as in the photo. I’m also including the source photo, as well as a black and white version for value comparison.
This is another exercise from PaintCoach Patreon’s page. The idea is that, if your solid shapes of values works, your painting will work once the detail is filled in. And it’s also to help beginners like me think in terms of shapes rather than things.
I used a raw umber and white tone on a 9×12 canvas, and sketched out in charcoal (a few days ago) — again, because I was also watching postseason baseball.
Joke’s on me. I posted the wrong “final” version earlier. This one, with the lights, is the final of “Winter Cabin”. For better or worse. Onward!
BetterLateThanNeverArt 