plate no. 4625

Old town II

Wassily Kandinsky, 1902

oil, canvasPost-Impressionismcityscapecityscapebuildingstreeshillsskyfigure

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in color mixing to achieve vibrant greens and earth tones, as well as practice applying visible brushstrokes to create texture and form.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 8 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the basic shapes of the buildings, hills, and path.
step 02
Block in the large areas of color: sky, hills, buildings, and path.
step 03
Begin adding darker values to define shadows and create depth.
step 04
Mix various shades of green and apply short, choppy brushstrokes to the hills to create texture.
step 05
Add details to the buildings, such as windows and roof lines, using small brushstrokes.
step 06
Paint the figure on the path, keeping it simple and stylized.
step 07
Refine the colors and values, adding highlights and shadows as needed.
step 08
Add final details and adjust the overall composition.

color palette

primary · yellow ochre · sap green · cadmium red · ultramarine blue

secondary · burnt umber · titanium white · cadmium yellow

Mix greens by combining yellow and blue, and adjust with white or burnt umber. Achieve the earth tones by mixing yellow ochre, burnt umber, and red.

techniques

·broken color
·impasto
·scumbling
·color mixing

common pitfalls

→Overblending colors, resulting in a muddy appearance.
→Making the brushstrokes too uniform, losing the textured effect.
→Not paying attention to the values, resulting in a flat image.
→Getting the perspective of the buildings wrong.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·Stretched canvas (12x16 inches)
·Oil paints: yellow ochre, sap green, cadmium red, ultramarine blue, burnt umber, titanium white, cadmium yellow
·Assorted brushes (round and flat)
·Palette
·Palette knife
·Linseed oil
·Odorless mineral spirits
·Rags