Remodeling a Painting - Part IV

Welcome back! I’m excited to share with you the last in the series of Remodeling a Painting. This step-by-step instruction has been a great way to motivate me to take a second look at a painting that wasn't working. It's also a great way to show you what I'm doing and explain my approach as I work on it. I am pretty happy with the way it's turned out. 

In this last segment, I'm addressing shadows and the color in the shadows, edges, highlights and loads of details. I've warmed up the background color a bit as well using a technique called scumbling. I've included my palette so you can see the color mixtures.

I hope that you've enjoyed this Remodeling a Painting series. Please drop me a line and let me know what you think. 

The Composition  18H x 24W, Oil on Canvas   

Edges

When considering the focus of a painting, you need to think about your edges. Edges are the borderlines between shapes of color. They are where things fit together, and define where the transitions occur. In painting, edges are either "sharp," "moderate," "soft," or "lost."
Sharp edges attract the eye and are often used with contrasting values to bring attention to a subject. It's a good idea to use sharp edges near or on your focal point.

Soft edges are like wall flowers, they don't want to attract attention, so the edges are blurred or softened. I use a dry brush to soften edges.
Lost edges occur when you can't tell the difference where one shape of a color begins and another one ends. Lost edges can provide mystery and a quiet atmosphere to a picture. They also help to depict movement, such as in a waterfall.

In this painting, the sharpest edges are the pen, tambourine and the lower part of the mandolin The inherent shapes of the mandolin and the guitar provide moderate edges, but I've also sharpened the edges of the pen and tambourine with contrasting values. I've softened the edges of the fabric, especially at the top edge. 

 

The Sheet Music and Fountain Pen

The paper was the most conflicting part of the original painting, partly because of the coolness of the color. For harmony, I warmed up the color by using various shades of yellow, peach, and gold. The shaping and position provided interest and, with the pen and pattern in the fabric, directs the eye into the picture. 

For the writing on the music, I added some notes and lines, but only a few. I first worked it out on the drawing before I transferred a design using charcoal onto the canvas. The idea is to provide a suggestion of music, without getting too detailed. I softened the "ink" to a dark gray so that it wouldn't stand out too much. 

The fountain pen is important as are the ink drips, so I sharpened the edges and added some highlights.

Shadows and Temperature

The color in the shadows of a subject are directly related to the temperature of light. If the light is cool, the shadows will be warm, if the light is warm, the shadows will be cool. Shadows on a cloudy day will be warm, whereas shadows on a bright sunny day are cool.

I've maintained from the start that the light source in this painting is a warm incandescent light. For this reason, the shadows are cool in temperature. I've used some blue and green in my shadows in the fabric and near the instruments. In the shadow of the tambourine, a reflection off of the instrument also includes local color in the shadow.

A color changes its appearance when either the light changes or its adjacent colors change.

Scumbling Technique

For the dark background, I used a method called scumbling. Scumbling is the application of a thin layer of paint with a dry brush and a loose hand over an existing layer. The idea is to allow parts of the already existing paint below to remain exposed. In most cases, scumbling is used over dried paint. My dark background was a bit cool, so I decided to warm it up slightly by scumbling alizarin crimson into it. It's very subtle change, but one that really makes a difference. I used a large bristle brush and pushed and pulled the paint over the dark areas with wide motions.

My Palette

My palette consisted of Cadmium Yellow, Cadmium Ornge, Medium Red, Alizarin Crimson, Transparent Oxide Yellow, Viridian, Ultramarine Blue, Burnt Umber and Titanium White.

I used a #8 bristle round for the background scumbling, and various medium and small sizes of synthetic rounds and brights brushes

Next

There's nothing better than painting en plein air on a beautiful warm spring day.

En plein air is a French expression meaning “in the open air”, and refers to the act of painting outdoors with the artist’s subject in full view.

My next series, Painting on the Farm River, will take you step-by-step with me as I paint this beautiful section of the Farm River on a warm and sunny day.

Don’t skimp with your paint on your palette. Put enough out so that you have something to work with and so you don’t have to keep stopping to mix and add paint.

Questions? Comments?

I hope you enjoyed this last of the four-part series, Remodeling a Painting. Feel free to share with others. I'd love to hear from you. Are you feeling inspired? What are you doing to stimulate your creative side?

Visit my website for more information about me, classes, exhibitions and for photos of my work.

Remodeling a Painting - Part 3

Welcome back! The remodeled music painting is progressing nicely. There is one change since Part 2, however. I had a revelation when I was painting and decided to switch my boring guitar with one a musical friend, Ron Anthony, designed and built. It is a beauty, with lots of detail and style. And it sounds great too! Of course, it doesn't hurt that Ron is an amazing musician, song writer, and singer.

As before, I'll walk you through paint mixing and application, still going from dark to light. For those who would like to know more about the drawing, I decided to include a mini lesson on perspective, using the tambourine.
I've included some information about color temperature, since I'm at the point where it's important for the harmony that the colors are mixed taking into account the temperature of the light on the subject.
There are wonderful books on art out there, so I've included a few of my favorites.

Going Thicker

In Part 2, I showed how I prepared the canvas and put in a thin coat of paint for all of the large shapes. This time, I'm beginning to use thicker paint, with no mineral spirits. I start with the darkest areas, which is the background, the tambourine and then the guitar and mandolin. I'm always working from dark to light, and thinking about where the light source is. I'm using a medium size bristle brush (#6) for the background and a medium size sable (#4) for the instruments. For smaller details, I use a sable round (#1).

For interest, I prefer a slightly turned view of all of the instruments, rather then a straight on view. I think it's more interesting and also, it helps to provide some depth.

I also started to add some shaping and color to the fabric, and strengthened the stripe that leads toward the tambourine.

Perspective Study of the Tambourine

The tambourine is a side view, making the shape more of an oval, The vanishing point (a point where parallel lines appear to converge) is off to the left, so to check the accuracy of the drawing, I first measure both the width and the height of the instrument using a pencil or my trusty measuring chopstick at arm's length. I put those measurements down, then I add my lines for the perspective, knowing that the vanishing point is off to the left.

I next put in vertical lines that are perpendicular to the perspective lines. To find the center, I draw a line from each corner within the square diagonally to the other. From here, I can draw an oval for the center negative space. I can measure the width of the inside and outside of the tambourine at the halfway point (see dotted line) and add those points.

This is a basic way to draw an ellipse. It works great for drawing things like tires on a car parked at an angle or any round shape that is viewed at an angle.

Mixing the Colors

Here's my palette for this lesson. I've mixed my dark background black, then I'm using Transparent Oxide Yellow for the guitar and for parts of the mandolin, mixing with cadmium yellow and titanium white for the lighter tones. For the paisley fabric, cadmium red, orange, and yellow in various mixes. For the green, Chromium Oxide Green and some Viridian. I'm also using some of this mixed with a tiny amount of red (remember, mix with the complement to subdue the color and in this case, give it a warmer tone). Always check the temperature of your colors and their relationship to each other. If one of the colors is unintentionally standing out, it could be that the temperature is either too cool or too warm.

It's important to note that you can mix all of these colors using your basic complementary colors, so don't feel the need to rush out and buy them. Sometimes, when I order paint from Jerry's Artarama, they send me tubes of odd colors for free. That was the case for the Transparent Oxide Yellow. I normally would mix my own, but since I had it, why not use it?

I'm leaving the music paper for last, since it is the lightest area. The titanium white is too cool, so I will warm it up a bit.

Use Professional Artist Grade paint whenever possible. Student grade paint is full of fillers and has less pigment, making it harder to cover an area. The color is weaker and will also lose its color strength over time.

Why Color Temperature is Important

Local colors in a subject are influenced by the source of light, whether it is warm or cool. When approaching a subject, the first thing you should do is figure out whether your light source is warm or cool. If it's a bright sunny day, it would be warm, if it's cloudy, it would probably be cool. Indoor light can be either warm or cool, depending on the source. It the light is from a fluorescent light, it will most likely be cool. Once this is established, you should keep the temperature of your colors consistent throughout the painting.

In this painting, the source of light is a warm incandescent bulb, so when I mix my colors for my subjects, I'll know to use or mix warmer shades of each color. The shadows are different. We'll talk about how to do shadows in Part 4.

Words on Paper

Some of my favorite painting books are:

• Alla Prima II by Richard Schmid
• Carlson's Guide to Landscape Painting by John F. Carlson
• Color Harmony in Your Paintings by Margaret Kessler
• Landscape Painting by Mitchell Albala

Some great drawing books:

• Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain by Betty Edwards
• How to Draw What You See by Rudy De Reyna
• Drawing for the Absolute Beginner by Mark and Mary Willenbrink

Next

In Part 4, I'm going to continue to work toward the lighter tones of the painting. I'l be paying attention to temperature and color harmony as I go. I'll tighten the details and drawings of the subjects and put in the music paper and pen. I'll also address folds, edges, and shadows. By the next email, the painting should be complete.

Use a palette knife to mix your paint on your palette. However, don’t be afraid of mixing some color on the canvas as you work. You may find some interesting results.