Alone up a dead end road and down into a makeshift parking area I found this scene. Rain kept interfering with my painting progress but the quiet was worth the annoyance. For much of the time I had to hold an umbrella over the painting and palette to keep them dry enough to progress.
I've had some questions so, if a picture is worth a thousand words, here are some answers to the question of 'How do you do this?' While it has been different every time, this is the general idea:
The Scene:
Initial separation of light and dark with an Isabey badger fitch:
Over the next few steps the image gets created by 'carving' with value and hue:
Finally, after the larger shapes begin to take some generalized form, I can begin to add the details that turn it into a recognizable image:
And that's pretty much it. Painting is just big shapes and doo-dads... (think I've said that before.....) Remember when comparing the photo of the scene to the painting that 1) this is a painting, not a reproduction of a photo, 2) cameras lie, and 3) see number one.
Thanks for posting your process Darrell! So interesting to see how artists approach plein air painting!...great little painting!
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