A Field Sketch and a final makover

Sunday, July 26, 2009

I am attaching two watercolors today.  One I did on site this morning at Castle Island.  I thank Lydia for the idea for this composition.  It is the view from the other side of the pine trees I painted last week in The Trio.  I consider this a "field sketch" which will require some work done in the studio.  In fact, I will repaint the entire scene using this sketch as a memory aid.  I think the composition is a much better one than the initial attempt.  It is basically an L-shaped composition with a few good interconnected shapes that I will be sure to exaggerate even more when I do it over in the studio.

The second painting is the final redo of The Gas Tank.  I punched up the sky quite a bit because I realized that this was what attracted me to the scene in the first place.  So the lessons offered here are twofold:  First, don't try to create masterpieces on site.  It rarely happens for a variety of reasons.  Think of your plein air attempts as sketches or studies from which you can learn to critique your own work as well as study nature first-hand.  The important thing however, in my opinion, is that you actually go outside in nature to draw, paint and study.  You need to observe in order to see well enough to paint.  The second lesson is to always keep in mind the reason you stopped where you did to paint.  If it is a sky, scream sky and whisper everything else.  If it is a shadow pattern, exaggerate the shape, color and tone of that pattern.  Always ask yourself: What is it about this scene that makes me want to paint?

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Attached Files   

Field Sketch.jpg	BobbyFarrell	Jul 26, 2009	896 KB
Gas Tank.jpg	BobbyFarrell	Jul 26, 2009	589 KB