Notes From Artist Jackie's Studio
A Free Newsletter for Those Who Love to Paint
Copyright 2003 - For Personal Use Only
Color of the Month
Zinc White - a transparent white. It dries very slowly. It is truly transparent - so it makes great soft clouds. Scrub it over an entire area to give the illusion of fog or mist. Scrub it over distant trees to push them further into the distance. Unlike titanium or flake white, it does not cover nor does it mix well with other colors, but used on its own it is a great addition to any palette.
Tool of the Month
Toothpicks - an item you may have in your kitchen. They can be flat or round. The best feature is that they end in a point. Dipped in paint that has been thinned to the consistency of salad dressing, they can be used to draw branches, thin tree trunks, or any irregular line. The flat ones have a small end and a broader end, which gives you two widths to use. They can give you more control than a brush. 'Pick' up a new tool and give it a try!
Main Feature
Make a Tree Sandwich!
A tree sandwich? The best way to approach painting a tree is to think of it as a sandwich. The sandwich consists of three layers: the 2 slices of bread and the filling. Think of the bread as the back of the trees and the front of the tree and the trunk and branches as the filling.
Begin by laying in the basic shape of the tree, keeping it lacy and sparse. You are painting the leaves on the other side of the trunk away from you. Add a little extra blue to your color, since this 'slice' of tree is a little further away, the addition of the blue makes your color a shade 'cooler' and more distant. Tip - don't make your tree tops too circular... unless you want lollipop topiaries, these will appear silly. Look carefully at your reference and follow the actual shape. Look into a book of trees. If you are creating your own I have found a slight muffin shape (curved top, wide sides, tapering towards the trunk) seems to work well.
Next, paint in your trunk and branches over the first slice. Make sure you add shadows and highlights - you do want a tasty filling. The shakier your hand the better, most branches and twigs are not straight and smooth. Try paining a series of 'dashes', changing the direction slightly with each one. For most trees, keep your trunk wider at the bottom, narrowing towards the top.
Lastly, the top layer: Paint the leaves in front of the tree. Here use your richest colors. Keep in mind where your light source is. The tree as a whole needs highlights and shadows, but each clump of leaves also needs them as well. Keep the leaves lacy - some sky should still peak trough here and there. Some of the leaves should cross and cover part of the trunk and branches - but some should show. Also, be creative with the colors you use. Leaves are not all green. Add some blues and violets int he shadow areas. Add some yellows and ochres in the highlight areas. Add some burnt sienna here and there - trees usually have new leaves popping out and some dying out all of the time. A combination of classic earth tones added to the trees will make the appear more alive.
These three separate layers will give your trees a fullness and life that they may have been lacking. This same idea may be used to paint a group of trees, a distant tree line, bushes,
Please visit again, soon!
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