I first started outdoor landscape paintings in Bolton Ontario Canada, and this work was among the first, done some time in 1996 or 1997. It was a warm winter day in the north hill valley, a fresh layer of snow had just fallen. I was in the Bolton camp area where my Dad and I often went skiing. The structure is an outhouse, in another version of this scene I put a moon shape on the door just for fun. I love the contrast between the artificial green of the plastic roof and the natural greens of the trees in the background.
The snow is mostly just the white of the paper. To make the light blue and pink shadows in the snow I initially put down a layer of clear water and then drop in a tiny bit of colour. After it dries I may need to soften the edges of the shadows by lifting off paint with a moist brush. To make the green in the roof I use viridian green, with a bit of ultramarine blue and alizarin crimson red. The tree green is more based on burnt sienna, with only hints of viridian green and probably lots of ultramarine blue and aureolin yellow. It was a long time ago to remember the exact mixtures, but most of the colour combinations I use have stayed the same for many years.
Bolton Camp Outhouse Winter, watercolour 5 x 9" cold press, 1998 (No. 0251)
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