Personal Art Blog

Sharing the lessons I teach at the Artist Guild and the personal discoveries in my art.

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Plum and Roses



Plum and Roses

8x6in oil on canvas panel    SOLD


I tried for a more muted palette today
and for the life of me I could not get the fracturing correct.
Frustrating!

Artist Note.

Regarding a transition value or color.
This may sound elementary but I am
always seeing hard contrasts where there should not be any.

Hard edge. Perfect for point of interest.
Usually the lightest light
next to the darkest dark
This is a value between the
light and dark.
The transition between the
two values (and color)
is a way of softening an edge
without blending them.






An example would be trees where they meet the sky.
A mixture of the foliage color with the sky color
makes a better transition. Some artists will let the tree
color mix into the sky color as they paint, but that often
gets a chalky effect.
Best to mix a new color between the two







Have a look at art books to find the transition colors
the masters used. I promise you - it is fascinating.

Exception. If your style is hard edged/high contrast
then this obviously is not for you!





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19 comments:

  1. Thanks so much. So good to be reminded of the rudiments!

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  2. Transition colors are most important in making everything sit right in two dimensional space. You make me want to get back to florals Julie.

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    1. Thanks. Glad you agree and I like the way you put it.
      Your revised "Summer" painting on your blog is awesome.

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  3. Julie, I love your work and how you share your artist notes with us. I am a big fan and look forward to each painting!!

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    1. Thank you, Carol. Nice of you to let me know. Your new painting is a real keeper!

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  4. Love your blog, so informative. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. I love your blog too. You are an artist with food as well as paint.
      I recommend anyone reading this to go to Margie's blog and get some great recipes!

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  5. Beautiful combination ..love the white flowers with the gorgeous blues/purples..Your post is always so informative Julie, which I love and it works with pastels as well...thank you for that!

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    1. Glad to hear you can see the principles work with pastels too. They should for all medias.
      I love this color combination too.

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  6. Your roses are lovely. I can't see your edge problems. It all looks good!

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    1. Thanks, Sue. It was the technique I was having problems with. I am still working this fracturing out. It has to work on all subject matter for me to totally adopt it.

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  7. Ah, edges! Thanks for your thoughts on those transitions which need some thought.Something that I wish would get easier! Beautiful palette.

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    1. Thanks Anne. With your technique, color/value changes do give the effect of blending and softening with great effect. I love the Gerber daisy on your blog. Your design is especially great

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  8. What I really love about your paintings...all of them, is that they talk to your emotions! You may not have achieved what you wanted, but it's still a wonderful piece.

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    1. Bless you! And thank you!
      Your sketches from your train trip are little jewels.

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  9. What an interesting green. Is it a ready pigment (emerald or so) or you mixed it yourself?
    Beautiful classical composition. Vase harmoniously corresponds to the plum - superb.

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    1. Hi Maga,
      I mix my greens. As I look at the painting I can see little swirls of colors threading though the greens.
      I have never tried emerald because it used to be poisonous. Do you use it?

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    2. No, I never used any ready green. I mix pigments for greens, like you - it's better for tonal uniformity. My Tuscany series was my playing with watercolor greens, but in oil I am a novice.

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I love that you are taking the time to comment and thank you for it. I am sure other readers will enjoy them too. If you cannot comment through this format then email me at juliefordoliver@gmail.com
Cheers,
Julie