plate no. 1520

Landscape with Rainbow, Henley on Thames

oil, canvasBaroquelandscapelandscaperainbowvillagehillscowstrees

experienced study

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in atmospheric perspective and rendering complex landscapes with subtle color variations. It also provides practice in depicting realistic lighting and creating a sense of depth.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 20 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Sketch the basic composition, focusing on the placement of the hills, village, and foreground elements.
step 02
Establish the sky and cloud formations with broad, blended strokes, paying attention to the light source.
step 03
Block in the distant hills and fields, using lighter and cooler colors to create atmospheric perspective.
step 04
Define the village buildings with more detail, focusing on their shapes and relationships to each other.
step 05
Add the foreground elements, such as the trees, cows, and foliage, with increasing detail and darker values.
step 06
Paint the rainbow using thin, translucent layers of color, blending them softly into the sky.
step 07
Refine the details and add highlights to create a sense of realism and depth.
step 08
Glaze the entire painting with thin layers of transparent color to unify the composition and enhance the colors.

color palette

primary · raw umber · yellow ochre · titanium white · Prussian blue

secondary · cadmium yellow · burnt sienna · alizarin crimson

Achieve the muted greens by mixing yellow ochre and Prussian blue, and adjust the values with white or raw umber. Create the rainbow colors by layering transparent glazes of cadmium yellow, alizarin crimson, and Prussian blue.

techniques