plate no. 1510

Tunis landscape with a sedentary Arabs

August Macke, 1914

watercolorFauvismlandscapelandscapetreesbuildingfigurefencegarden

some experience helpful

Recreating this painting will help students understand color layering and how to create depth using watercolor washes. It also offers practice in simplifying complex scenes into basic shapes and colors.

technical profile

palette complexity

brushwork visibility

value contrast

compositional simplicity

study guide

est. 6 hrs

approach — 8 steps

step 01
Lightly sketch the main shapes: the house, trees, figure, and fence.
step 02
Apply a light wash of blue for the sky, allowing it to blend with white areas.
step 03
Paint the larger areas of green for the trees and foliage, varying the shades slightly.
step 04
Add the red roof of the house and the brown tones for the building's structure.
step 05
Introduce the blue fence and the red flowers along the fence line.
step 06
Paint the figure with dark blue and white, keeping it simple.
step 07
Add the yellow dots to represent flowers or leaves on the ground.
step 08
Refine details and add darker accents to create depth and definition.

color palette

primary · cerulean blue · sap green · burnt sienna · cadmium red

secondary · yellow ochre · ultramarine blue · raw umber

Mix greens by blending blues and yellows. Achieve variations in tone by adding water to dilute the colors. Browns can be created by mixing red, yellow, and blue.

techniques