plate no. 3174

Sixty Years Ago

oil, canvasRomanticismlandscapelandscapetreesroadfigurebuildingsky

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students develop skills in atmospheric perspective and rendering complex textures like wet roads and foliage. It also provides practice in creating a sense of depth and mood using a limited color palette.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 15 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Sketch the basic composition, focusing on the perspective of the road and the placement of the main elements (trees, building, figure).
step 02
Establish the overall warm, golden tone of the sky with a thin wash of color.
step 03
Block in the main shapes of the trees and building with darker values, paying attention to their relative sizes and positions.
step 04
Begin adding details to the trees, using a variety of brushstrokes to create the texture of branches and twigs.
step 05
Work on the road, building up layers of color and texture to simulate the wet surface and reflections.
step 06
Add the figure, paying attention to its proportion and placement within the scene.
step 07
Refine the details of the building and surrounding foliage, adding highlights and shadows to create depth.
step 08
Add final touches and highlights to the puddles and reflections on the road.

color palette

primary · yellow ochre · burnt umber · raw sienna

secondary · ultramarine blue · titanium white

Achieve the warm, golden tones by mixing yellow ochre with small amounts of burnt umber and white. Use ultramarine blue to create cooler shadows and to darken the browns.

techniques

·atmospheric perspective
·scumbling
·glazing
·dry brushing
·broken color

common pitfalls

→Overworking the details too early in the process.
→Failing to establish a strong sense of perspective.
→Using too much color and losing the overall warm, muted tone.
→Making the trees too uniform and lacking in variation.

materials

surface · stretched canvas

required

·stretched canvas 18x24
·oil paints (yellow ochre, burnt umber, raw sienna, ultramarine blue, titanium white)
·linseed oil
·turpentine or odorless mineral spirits
·assorted round and flat brushes
·palette
·palette knife
·rags