Painting A Slow Moving River Quickly
Part 4 of Peter Cunningham's Learn to Paint with Acrylics course at the ARTBANK Bunclody was a fast-paced romp to the finish line, which was in difference to the slow paced river we each painted.
NEWS JUST IN! Peter is to deliver a second 6-week Learning to Paint with Acrylics course from Monday 27th March!
Book your place with Jon King, ARTBANK Bunclody's curator, on 0894972664 or email curator@artbank.bunclody.eu.
The six-week course costs just €60. Get your skates on, from what I hear these places are being scooped up as quickly as Jon's half-time biscuits!
Recap
Last week Peter led us through the painting of a beautiful backlit, bluebell-strewn woodland glade. At the end of the evening, Peter asked us to prepare our canvases and papers with a quarter painted in burnt umber for this week. This would form the base layer for our slow moving river.
Last week, Peter showed us how to prepare our river
And they're off - Painting!
And then, before we knew it, Peter had the top third of the canvas painted in titanium white, and was moving for the ultramarine blue to touch in above the clouds. Brushes dipped, paints squeezed, seats aligned, and we were off!
Dee was finishing off her river's back-painting. It wasn't that she hadn't done her homework, it was just that she felt the colour was not where she wanted it. And it was fine, by the time we had greened in the far bank of trees, Dee's bottom was dry.
Generally, confidence was high judging by our language barometer to my right (at a steady Certificate 12). On went the white and blended in went the blue and sky and clouds appeared. We looked up and Peter had the dark insides of trees on the opposite river bank flowing off his brush in waves. (Certificate 15).
As we tuned in and caught up, Peter began picking out highlights in lighter greens, building a depth and solidity to his arboreal scene. Most of us were now caught up in the action, and to be honest, having only a whale of a time! Peter was keeping us moving, keeping the picture "free", and helping us to avoid sticking in the detail.
We students gathering around Peter for a demonstration
Next, Peter gave us a great tip on how to paint reflections - using reflections. It seems so obvious now, but in truth, it was a revelation. Peter sets up glass panes to sit along the waterline, and looks through it to see the reflection of the scene he has painted and also sees through to what he is painting in the 'water'.
Peter setting up a glass pane to cast reflections
Peter "painting through the glass" to give perfect reflections in our rivers
Peter's students in a reflective mood...
Advice for Future Students
There is definitely something to be said about brushes and paints. As much as we will all be tempted to start off cheaply because we're not certain that we'll carry on with painting after the course, don't buy cheap!
Brushes: The cheaper brushes I bought (around €4) all suffered from alopecia and left trails of hair across my painting. Having invested (particularly in an expensive Fan' brush at €13.50), the difference in the way the paint is laid, being smooth and without shavings is fantastic.
Thanks to the ladies at "Arts and Crafts" of Slaney Street, Enniscorthy this week. They don't have a website, but you can call ahead on (053)9233435. It's only a small shop, but stuffed to the gills for crafters of all types, and the Galeria paint I've been using is very reasonably priced.
Paper vs. Board: I started off painting on A4 "acrylic paper". It seemed a good idea as, although not inexpensive, it offered volumes of practice. However, the paper isn't free from buckling even when taped down. This week I painted on a larger canvas board; a gift from my Wife (still after me painting a ruddy hare). It was a far superior experience...if more demanding for needing to lay double the paint down in good time with the pace :)
Break Time
And the lovely Jon King delivered well-earned cuppas all round with biscuits and cookies too. Now tell me this isn't the way to spend a Monday evening?
The Home Straight
Jon delivered a new poem while we reconvened from our brew. It's transcribed here from ARTBANK Bunclody's Facebook page. It best describes what happened next.
Our intrepid 8 return for round 4; Canvases with their bottom third Preprinted in a dark brown. Our Maestro begins to paint white on A white canvas! Followed by blue Sky in almost cloudlike shapes! Between the brown area, a river, And the sky, green, blue and yellow Is applied. This mass of colours is Manipulating into arboreal shapes And a weeping willow makes an Entry mid stage left. Brown defines Exposed branches, the far bank takes Shape. Small patches of colour creates Reflections on the water's surface as if Actually floating. And the final flourish, The near bank is there, after a few deft Strokes accompanied by low Bushes And an almost shy appearance of a Pine tree entering slowly, front stage Right. Picture number 3 is completed Ready to be framed and hung next to Its Acrylic cousins to await number 5. Jon King, March 2017
Once the far bank and reflections had been painted, as Jon's descriptive poem says, we added the near bank and a dark tree to give the scene its depth. I added some flowers as I got carried away in the moment. Give me a couple of hours and I'd have parked one of my tractors in there, too!
As at the close of each week of Peter's fabulous course, we all come away with our very own artworks painted in acrylic. Although, it has to be said, most each and every one of us felt we had a little more work to do on our creations this week. But it's like Peter says, "knowing when to stop..." That, and it's just so absorbing and outright fun.
We are learning to paint with acrylics - Peter is measuring up to his promise, and some. We're not Peter Cunningham clones though, which I hope you will see from our galleries each week. We each have our own styles, specialties, and areas to work on. Peter has given us the techniques we need to get going with creditable paintings, and is encouraging us to develop as we want or need to. That's the sign of a very capable instructor, I think.
And what's more, we are all enjoying painting together, too. There's even talk of post-course paint-ups! That'd be great as there's something calming and supportive in painting together.
Gallery
Here's me proudly displaying my biggest and most ambitious project yet!
(Thanks for taking the pic Úna)
