plate no. 3791

Old Houses

Dobri Dobrev, 1960

oilRealismcityscapebuildingshouseslandscapedonkeytreesstreet

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in depicting form using light and shadow, as well as creating texture with visible brushstrokes. It also provides practice in creating a sense of depth and atmosphere in a landscape.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 12 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the main shapes of the buildings, ground, and trees, paying attention to perspective.
step 02
Block in the large areas of color for the sky, ground, buildings, and trees using thinned paint.
step 03
Establish the basic value structure by adding darker shadows and lighter highlights.
step 04
Begin refining the shapes of the buildings and adding details such as windows and roof tiles.
step 05
Add texture to the ground and buildings using visible brushstrokes and varying the paint thickness.
step 06
Paint the trees, focusing on capturing the overall shape and suggesting individual leaves with small brushstrokes.
step 07
Add the figure of the donkey, paying attention to its proportions and placement within the scene.
step 08
Make final adjustments to the colors, values, and details to create a cohesive and atmospheric painting.

color palette

primary · burnt umber · yellow ochre · titanium white

secondary · cadmium red · ultramarine blue · sap green

Mix various shades of brown and gray by combining burnt umber, yellow ochre, and white. Use ultramarine blue and burnt umber to create darker shadows. Mix greens by combining yellow ochre and ultramarine blue.

techniques

·blocking in
·dry brush texture
·scumbling
·broken color
·atmospheric perspective

common pitfalls

→Overworking the details and losing the overall sense of atmosphere.
→Creating flat, lifeless colors by not mixing enough variations.
→Ignoring the perspective and creating distorted shapes.
→Making the brushstrokes too uniform and losing the sense of texture.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·stretched canvas (12x16 inches)
·oil paints (burnt umber, yellow ochre, titanium white, cadmium red, ultramarine blue, sap green)
·palette
·palette knife
·assorted brushes (round, flat, filbert)
·linseed oil
·turpentine or odorless mineral spirits