Make Your Colors POP

"The road to color harmony begins with understanding the characteristics and properties of the colors on your palette-how to mix and match them so that they work for you.  You must appreciate the full potential of every color and the effect each color has on another." Margaret Kessler

I've had the book called "Color Harmony in Your Paintings" by Margaret Kessler for sometime and I know that when I first received it I flipped through the pages but up to this point I haven't really studied it.  Today I am reading through it's pages and am anticipating the information that I am going to glean from within it's covers.

I find myself underlining several great points on page 15 that deal with the topic of Intensity.  Kessler says, "The key to making your paintings 'pop' is to juxtapose bright hues against dull ones."  I think that I'm going to write this down on a note card and post it on my easel because even though during my painting lessons this has been discussed, I find that in the heat of painting these important foundational points can be neglected.  You really want an object to "POP" you need to paint the lighter values next to a darker color.  Leaves in a tree are a great example.  As you increasingly lighten the value of your leaf color you want to position the brightest leaves in areas that are surrounded by darkness.  I did this in my painting "Fallen" and the birch saplings seem to almost jump off the canvas. Lily also had me place light colors for rocks in the shadows and dark colors for the rocks in the sunlit areas.

Painting completed during my painting lessons with teacher Lily Adamczyk

Last Leaf

This concept again was used in my painting Last Leaf.  The darkness of the pine needles cause the light gold tones in the leaf to just pop off the canvas. 

 

Who Knew Talking About Landscapes Could Be So DEEP

When I took my first painting lesson back in July 2012 with instructor and friend, Lily Adamczyk the concept of creating depth in your landscape was stressed from day one.  Prior to taking lessons, I would work on my backgrounds by adding almost as much details as I did with the foreground. 



This earlier piece I called "Nevada Dreams" lacks that distance and transition from foreground to background that I am now learning is so important.  I still like elements in this piece, but now I'm learning there are several things that I should have done to make this composition better.  I now know that I should split my canvas in 1/3's rather than making this 1/2 sky and 1/2 landscape.  I also believe I could have better accomplished the impression of distance if I had made the mountains end  at either 1/3 or 2/3's of the canvas and give the impression of a distant range far in the horizon.  After all, Nevada has more mountain ranges than any other state so there are always mountains in the distance no matter where you look.  I will one day revisit this shack located east of Tonopah and give it another go around.

Nevada Dreams- 24 x 36 acrylic painting

This next painting that I call "Fallen" was completed as I took my first lessons with my accomplished instructor.  It clearly gives the impression that the forest path continues.  Your eye is drawn there because you can see the impression of trees and sunlight in the distance.  You know that your hike isn't finished but rather this is only a stopping point as you ponder this giant of the forest that fallen.  Good landscapes must engage the viewer, causing them to stop and consider the whole canvas.  A simple glance would never do.   So I have tried to remember that lesson with each of my painting since then.

Fallen- 16 x 20 Oil painting- See how the forest trail continues on further giving this painting depth

Newest acrylic called "Galena Creek Birches"-  again I have continued the trail on into the forest drawing your eyes up the hill.  For a better picture you should check out my website at JulieTownsendStudio.com