plate no. 3884
Landscape from Delphi
Spyros Papaloukas, 1945
some experience helpful
Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in layering colors to create depth and using expressive brushstrokes to convey texture and form. It's a good exercise in simplifying a complex landscape into basic shapes and colors.
technical profile
palette complexity
3
brushwork visibility
4
value contrast
3
compositional simplicity
4
study guide
est. 8 hrsapproach — 8 steps
- step 01
Lightly sketch the basic shapes of the mountains, hills, and foreground.
- step 02
Block in the sky with a thin wash of light blue/grey.
- step 03
Apply a base layer of color to the mountains, using a mix of white, grey, and a touch of blue.
- step 04
Add shadows and highlights to the mountains to define their form, using darker greys and lighter whites.
- step 05
Paint the hills with a base layer of white mixed with yellow and green.
- step 06
Add shadows and highlights to the hills, using darker yellows and greens.
- step 07
Paint the foreground with short, broken brushstrokes of white, yellow, green, and orange to suggest vegetation.
- step 08
Add the small figure in the foreground with a dark color.
color palette
primary · titanium white · yellow ochre · ultramarine blue
secondary · burnt sienna · sap green
Mix white with small amounts of blue and yellow to create the various shades of grey and green needed for the mountains and hills. Use burnt sienna to warm up the yellows and create earth tones.
techniques
- ·dry brush
- ·broken color
- ·scumbling
- ·layering
- ·color mixing
common pitfalls
- →Over-blending the colors, which can flatten the image.
- →Not varying the brushstrokes enough, resulting in a monotonous texture.
- →Making the colors too saturated, losing the subtle atmospheric effect.
- →Ignoring the underlying structure of the landscape.
materials
surface · stretched canvas
required
- ·stretched canvas
- ·titanium white oil paint
- ·yellow ochre oil paint
- ·ultramarine blue oil paint
- ·burnt sienna oil paint
- ·sap green oil paint
- ·round brushes (various sizes)
- ·palette
optional
- ·palette knife
- ·linseed oil
- ·odorless mineral spirits
Use a canvas with a medium texture to enhance the broken color effect. Consider using a limited palette to simplify color mixing.
tips & new artworks in your inbox
no spam — unsubscribe anytime.
or to save artworks, chat, and track progress
in this vein
related artworks
Dolly Sisters
Kees van Dongen
Nude with Loaves
Jean Helion
My Father
Carlos Botelho
Helen
Chronis Botsoglou
The portrait painter in the country
Albin Egger-Lienz
Marketta on Lázeňská street, Prague
Maria Bozoky
Winter at the Entrepotdok, in Amsterdam city
Paul Werner
Old Woman with Masks (Theatre of Masks)
James Ensor