COMPOSITION PRACTICE #1, PART 2

    Now is a good time to give the water it's final application. Mixing 3 or 4 darker mixtures, apply each as broadstroke, proceeding again with the lightest to darkest values. Concentrate the darker values up front, and the the lighter ones toward the mountains. Painting strokes on dry paper will produce washes with firm outlines. Painting a darker value into wet previous value will form a blend. Letting these dry before a final application will form outlined shapes. Work your values in the manner you prefer.

    The side of the cliff needs 2 or 3 values that can be similar in color to the top or contrast with it. You choose. The image shows light blends of purples and blues suggesting erosion of the cliff's height. A light purple wash paints the individual curves and depressions. A second broad stroke application of the purple deepens the initial wash in some places. A darker blue hue is touched to washes in the crevices for depth.

    As the water is drying, we'll move to the completion of the cliff and in doing so, paint with 2 additional brush techniques. First, 2 or 3 darker values for ground should be made, perhaps a purple/green, brown/green, blue/green, darker yellow/green--well, you get the idea. Apply shadow effects around back and front of tree areas with darker tones placed forward.

    Now, here's two ways to use a brush for different effects. First, a way to paint several lines at once is with a "split" brush. Mix a dark black/blue or black/something for final contrast. Clean the brush and dry it, squeezing it flat between the fingers. As you squeeze it, form the brush into a flat, fan shape. Lightly touch just the tips of the bristles into the darkest value. Paint with short, curved strokes moving left, straight up and right and you'll effect many "grass blades" with just 1 stroke. The second method is to use both ends of the brush. Apply a "dab" of the darkest value to a small area, like along a cliff edge. Immediately reverse the brush and drag the paint upward using the tip of the brush handle. You should be able to pull 3 or 4 stalks or blades up at one time. Give this a try. It's really fun to do and produces thin, fine detail lines which can curve in any direction. The dark greenery along the cliff and small grass patches around the tree were produced in this manner.

    Next, the sides of the cliff need a very dark tone for outlining the curved recessions and shadowing. Mixing 1 dark hue, and laying down a contrasting wash and lightening it with water should work just fine and put the finishing touches on this area. Like to add a touch of another dark color? Go right ahead. Be my guest!

    Two darker values are mixed for the final texturing of the mountains. The lighter one in the image was broad stroked mostly near the top of the first two hills. The darker one was touched to those areas for blending, and a fine scattered outline defined the contours of all. The subtle wash applications show underneath, and that's one of the joys of watercolors--transparent shapes with changing overlays.

    Well, it may appear that something big was forgotten, but it wasn't. We'll let the painting dry before finishing it up with a colorful tree. Ready for the last part? Then, click HERE for the finishing touches.