I managed to make it partly down the canal bike path and then had to switch onto st Patrick street to ride it out to Lachine. In this view you are looking west along the st Lawrence river with three trees in the foreground, a small one, a medium and a large one. The water was completely melted and had a dull dark blue colour with yellowish highlights in the waves. Just between the heavy overcast clouds and the river there was a gap of brilliant coral sky from the setting sun. I had to let the water and the sky dry completely before overlaying the trees, so I turned to my right a bit and started a second painting.
Coral Sunset with Three Trees st Lawrence River, watercolour 6 x 10" rough press, March 2023 (No. 3381)
Just to my right you can see the bike path still covered in snow here and there. If there had been a bit more sun left I might have continued to the point of the park, but it was starting to get dark with the sun down. The sunset is a rather simple mix of colours, mostly benzi orange (PO62) with a touch of pyrol orange (PO73). To create the illusion of a sunset, its more about the surrounding colours, you see how the dark neutral blues of the clouds and water provide a good contrast for the shimmering coral sky. Getting the water colour is actually the hardest part of the painting. Since I have been painting the st Lawrence for years now, I gained a good appreciation for what colours this river can be depending on the lighting conditions and angles. To get the blue river colour, I use a complex mix of indo blue (PB60), magenta (PV19), phthalo blue-green (PG7) and touches of carbon black (PBk6) with yellow (PY43) or burnt sienna (PR101). Its complex because it needs to be adjusted in subtle ways. In the distance its more blue violet, the middle blue, and close to the shore it can be brownish. I thought to today that I could paint this river my whole life and it would never get old!
Coral Sunset st Lawrence River with Bike Path, watercolour 5 x 7" cold press, March 2023 (No. 3422)
No comments:
Post a Comment