Working on 3 or 4 images at a time keeps one focused, enables drying time for each area while painting somewhere else and offers diversity. This practice makes room for common landscape use and we were ready to get started.

  Again, following the space order of painting, we'll cover sky variations and then, turning the paper, work in some handling of hills and big rocks. Ready?

  BLOTTING is quick method of lightening or removing a color. The left sky background has the paper streaked with brush fulls of clean water, and doing a graded wash in 3 different values. While still wet, paper toweling is dabbed into areas to lift off the pigment. Sharp edges are formed as the tissue/paper towel is crushed differently for each pressing down.

  On the right is a simple multicolor graded wash. We place the lightest color in a wetted area first, then added the top and botton contrasts. Since everyone uses their own color choices, we had lots of different outcomes!

  Next right, we tried a more unfriendly looking sky. Blue/black/purple mixes with blue/red mixes were the base colors. Three random areas were wetted down in upward curved sweeps. The lighter blue was placed on both sides of the wet areas. The darkest value was placed along the bottom edge and randomly at the top. The brush was dried, flattened and stroked upward several times to drag the blends into curved arches.

  The right formations were a combination of water drips and blotting in the same area. The bottom half was wetted down, and a graded wash applied at the top. Clean water was dropped from the brush in 3 or 4 places. Immediately, a tissue or paper towel was dabbed into the center of the water spot and lighter lifts resulted.

BACK TO LAYERS

Low values of purples and blue/turquoise are applied on a dry background. Graded washes make soft blends.

Here, the bottom half area is stroked with clear water leaving some open spaces. Light browns and yellow/greens are applied.

Broad, loose strokes and dabs apply 2nd layers of the first hues, with a touch of black added.

Now, yellow, orange and brown light values are stroked in leaving areas of the base colors dry.

Last layer values are added over the dried ones, with darker purple/black values used differently on each mountain, allowing areas of all 3 layers to be seen. Backgrounds were completed when dry in any of the methods previously practiced. Additional details were welcomed.

Browns and purples DRY BRUSH strokes are applied loosely across the dry background. SPATTERS were flicked over the rock area. Purple/black weeds were painted into the cracks and quickly SCRAPED up with the brush handle. Background was finished as desired.