Click Here to BidI did this little plein air sketch this morning. This is an old log house located very close to where I live. Compared with my painting posted previously, I felt a little better. I am working on the foundation of my plein air paintings. For this one, I am paying attention on mixing greys. I was using ultramarine blue, cadmium orange, and Naples yellow to get the grey for the shadow of the house. If you have good ways of mixing greys, would you mind sharing them with me?
11 comments:
Your grays are great. Because I use a limited palette when plein airing (6 colors + white), for my grays I often use cad yellow deep and ultramarine.
I also use a limited palette. I use alizarin crimson, cad yellow light and ultramarine blue. I like using this mixture because if the gray has a blue tint i add more blue. If it's more more violet, i add more red.
Qiang, This piece reads great just like it is.
Qiang, I just tried plein air for the first time this past weekend, not an easy task. If you are not familiar with Elizabeth Tolley's book "Oil Painter's Solution Book for Landscapes", you might want to take a look at it. She discusses the use of gray's in her chapter on color and values. Interesting! I know you don't have black on your palette, but she does a value scale of grays on one side of her palette to mix in with other colors. Can't wait for you to "work on your plein air foundation" so you can do this as a workshop, as well as your still life! You are such an incredible teacher! By the way, this log house is perfect with the grays you mixed.
I agree. This is a very cute little painting. i love the greys.
I agree. This is a very cute little painting. i love the greys.
our light here on the redwood coast is very different than in texas, so what i use may not work well for you! i mix prussian blue & alizarin crimson, then a yellow - often yellow ocher or trans yellow oxide, sometimes cad yellow light, and then white. i rarely use naples yellow as i find it looks chalky to me (tho a friend says she uses it successfully in her skin-tone mixes). then again, i'm still flailing around with plein air myself!
you on the other hand have started out with a bang! it's a delightful little painting, clearly showing the light. what fun you now have the day-time to paint!
Your grays are beautiful - as is the whole painting! You captured the light and the colors are perfect.
Amazing brushwork!
Phil Starke taught me to identify the value first and mix a cool gray. Once the value is established he mixes a variety of other clean colors slightly lighter and lays them on top of the cool shadow value. It works out beautifully. I generally start with ultramarine blue and alizarin crimson, then grey it down with cadmium lemon as necessary unless it is a very neutral grey, in which case I use cad red. I think that veridian and alizarin makes very rich greys too.
I love it! So simple, so precise, yet loose! Every line has a purpose. I also struggle with plein air....I find it plein frustrating!
Greys can be achieved from a multitude color combinations, I personally try to avoid them instead of making them.
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