plate no. 9939
Café Terrace at Night
Vincent van Gogh, 1888
experienced study
This painting would teach students expressive brushwork techniques and how to create dramatic contrast between warm artificial light and cool night sky colors.
technical profile
palette complexity
4
brushwork visibility
5
value contrast
5
compositional simplicity
3
study guide
est. 25 hrsapproach — 8 steps
- step 01
Sketch the basic perspective of the street and cafe terrace
- step 02
Block in the dark night sky with ultramarine blue
- step 03
Paint the warm yellow cafe interior and awning
- step 04
Add the cobblestone street using varied earth tones
- step 05
Paint the building facades with cool blues and purples
- step 06
Add small figures and cafe details
- step 07
Apply stars and highlights with thick impasto
- step 08
Refine brushwork to emphasize directional movement
color palette
primary · ultramarine blue · cadmium yellow · burnt sienna · titanium white
secondary · alizarin crimson · viridian green · raw umber · cadmium orange
Mix warm yellows with orange for cafe glow, blend blues with purple for night shadows, use complementary colors for vibrant contrast
techniques
- ·impasto application
- ·directional brushstrokes
- ·color temperature contrast
- ·perspective drawing
- ·expressive mark-making
common pitfalls
- →overblending the distinct brushstrokes
- →making the perspective too steep
- →losing the warm-cool color contrast
- →painting stars too large or uniform
materials
surface · stretched canvas or canvas board
required
- ·oil paints in primary colors plus earth tones
- ·#6 flat brush
- ·#4 filbert brush
- ·#2 round brush
- ·palette knife
- ·stretched canvas 16x20
- ·turpentine
- ·linseed oil
optional
- ·fan brush for texture
- ·painting medium
- ·easel
- ·palette paper
Use quality brushes that can handle thick paint application and maintain their shape for expressive marks
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