plate no. 7354

Rue Jean Durand Et L'église, Stains (Seine Saint Denis)

Maurice Utrillo, 1940

oil, canvasPost-Impressionismcityscapebuildingsstreetchurchskywindowsshutters

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in perspective, color mixing for muted tones, and capturing the texture of old buildings with visible brushstrokes. It's a good exercise in simplifying complex scenes into basic shapes and colors.

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, street, and church, focusing on perspective.
step 02
Block in the sky with a thin wash of light blue and white.
step 03
Establish the main color blocks for the buildings, using a limited palette of earth tones and white.
step 04
Add details to the buildings, such as windows, shutters, and doors, using darker values.
step 05
Paint the street with a mix of browns, grays, and yellows, suggesting the texture of the pavement.
step 06
Add highlights and shadows to create depth and dimension.
step 07
Refine the details of the church steeple and other architectural elements.
step 08
Add final touches and adjust colors as needed.

color palette

primary · titanium white · raw umber · burnt sienna

secondary · cerulean blue · cadmium orange · viridian green

Achieve the muted colors by mixing earth tones with white and small amounts of complementary colors to desaturate them. For the sky, mix white with a touch of blue.

techniques