Demo: Angela Corben - Dynamic Landscape
A thoroughly helpful demo, full of practical advice. Angela explored the ways to produce a dynamic landscape:
Composition was the key to drawing the eye into the painting from foreground to mid ground to distance and out again
Think about movement - arrange the lines and shapes to give a sense of rhythm.
Use contrasting colour and tone to catch the attention of the viewer.
Use gestures - bold, varied brushstrokes, using a range of different brushes and tools.
Angela advised doing a small sketch, dividing up the space to edit the reference into a good composition. Printing out the reference picture in black and white monochrome helped to understand the shapes and tonal values. It was also helpful to do a tonal drawing of the reference and perhaps a continuous line drawing. Quite often scenes needed to be pruned or simplified to produce an effective composition.
To start the painting, block in the main shapes, attending to the darkest darks and lightest lights first. Use a large brush, preferably one with stiff bristles. Try to blend colours on the canvas, rather than the palette. Brushwork should be varied and decisive. Bold areas should be balanced with more detailed brushstrokes.
Angela’s workshop will be on Saturday, 29th November, 10.00-4.00. It will be most useful to members using acrylic or oils but other opaque media such as pastels would also work. She will bring some useful picture references or members can use their own. Those who would like to try out oils could borrow some club materials - let Jen know. If you would like to join us, please book here.
