plate no. 2153

Green Hills and Farmland

oil, canvasImpressionismlandscapelandscapetreesroadhousehillsfoliage

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in layering colors to create depth and atmospheric perspective, as well as simplifying complex forms into basic shapes.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 8 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Sketch the basic composition, focusing on the placement of the road, hills, and house.
step 02
Block in the sky with a thin wash of pale blue and white.
step 03
Establish the dark masses of the trees and foliage using a mix of greens and browns.
step 04
Paint the road using a range of grays and browns, suggesting the texture of the surface.
step 05
Add the details of the house, keeping it simple and impressionistic.
step 06
Layer lighter greens and yellows to suggest sunlight on the foliage.
step 07
Add highlights to the road and the rocks to create depth.
step 08
Refine the details and adjust the values to create a sense of atmosphere.

color palette

primary · viridian green · raw umber · titanium white · yellow ochre

secondary · ultramarine blue · cadmium yellow · burnt sienna

Mix greens by combining blues and yellows with varying amounts of white. Use raw umber and white for the road, adding touches of blue or green for variation. Create atmospheric perspective by lightening and muting colors as they recede into the distance.

techniques

·broken color
·scumbling
·atmospheric perspective
·layering
·alla prima

common pitfalls

→Overworking the details and losing the impressionistic feel.
→Creating colors that are too saturated and unnatural.
→Failing to establish a clear sense of depth and atmosphere.
→Making the brushstrokes too uniform and losing the texture.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·stretched canvas 12x16
·oil paints (viridian green, raw umber, titanium white, yellow ochre, ultramarine blue, cadmium yellow, burnt sienna)
·palette
·assorted brushes (round and flat)
·linseed oil
·mineral spirits
·palette knife