Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors: Mastering Plein Air

• PAINTING

Fall in love with painting outdoors!

Enjoy the scenery and seize the moment with this treasury of advice from top plein air painter Michael Chesley Johnson and fourteen more of today’s best outdoor artists: Rob Adams Tony Allain Lyn Asselta Marcia Burtt Lorenzo Chavez

Nathan Fowkes Marc Hanson Margaret Larlham Calvin Liang Kim Lordier

Mark Mehaffey Sandra Nunes Stephen Quiller Colley Whisson

Learn how to set a goal before you go out—to explore a new area, gather references, practice a skill, or create a finished piece—then use the methods in this book to say what you want to say with your art.

• Materials, site selection and practical tips for painting outdoors • Values, edges, shapes, composition and color • Secrets to refining and finishing while keeping the freshness alive • Bringing outdoor studies back into the studio • 20 complete start-to-finish demonstrations • Hundreds of gorgeous images

62680cvr.indd 1

$28.99 US • $43.50 CAN ISBN 978-1-68462-045-6

MICHAEL CHESLEY JOHNSON

BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPE PAINTING OUTDOORS mastering plein air

Get Creative 6

Nothing can replace the authenticity and freshness of stepping outside into the field, taking it all in, and capturing the feeling of being there with your art.

Whether you’re a beginner or you want to expand your skills and techniques, this is your must-have guide to painting beautiful landscapes outdoors.

BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPE PAINTING OUTDOORS | MICHAEL CHESLEY JOHNSON

ART TECHNIQUES

2021-10-06 2:38 PM

BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPE PAINTING OUTDOORS

BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPE PAINTING OUTDOORS mastering plein air MICHAEL CHESLEY JOHNSON

Get Creative 6 An imprint of Mixed Media Resources 104 W. 27th Street New York, NY 10001 Editor Pamela Wissman Art Director Irene Ledwith Book Design Alison Wilkes Chief Executive Officer Caroline Kilmer President Art Joinnides Chairman Jay Stein Copyright © 2022 by Michael Chesley Johnson All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means—graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or information storage-and-retrieval systems— without permission of the publisher.

The written instructions, photographs, designs, and projects are intended for the personal, noncommercial use of the retail purchaser and are under federal copyright law; they are not to be reproduced in any form for commercial use.

Permission is granted to photocopy content for the personal use of the retail purchaser.

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Names: Johnson, Michael Chesley, author.

Title: Beautiful landscape painting outdoors: mastering plein air /

Michael Chesley Johnson.

Description: First edition. | New York, NY: Get Creative 6, [2022] |

Includes index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2021030303 | ISBN 9781684620456 Subjects: LCSH: Landscape painting—Technique. | Plein air painting—Technique.

Classification: LCC ND1342 .J56 2022 | DDC 758/.1—dc23 LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2021030303 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 First Edition Printed in China

To my wife, Trina

CONTENTS

CHAPTER 5

Refining and Finishing.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 78

CHAPTER 2

Knowing When You’re Done Installing the Third Dimension Moving in for the Finish Unity of Effect Finishing or Reworking Demonstration | Berlin Cathedral | Nathan Fowkes Demonstration | Coastal Sand Dunes, Australia Colley Whisson 96 Demonstration | June Lake Loop Aspens | Kim Lordier 98 Demonstration | Fall Reflections | Mark Mehaffey

What to Look For.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

CHAPTER 6

Introduction.

......................................8

CHAPTER 1

Before You Go Out. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 11 Going Out with a Goal 14 Making Plein Air Painting Easier 15 Art Materials

25 26 29 31 33

Learning to See Picking Your Subject Setting Up Mood Makes the Painting Demonstration | Early Autumn by Ghost Lake Stephen Quiller

CHAPTER 3

Designing Your Painting Effectively.. . . . . . . . . . . . . 36 37 38 44 45 49 50 51

Understanding Abstraction Seeing Values Identifying Edges Understanding Shapes Determining Center of Interest Creating Thumbnail Sketches Demonstration | Autumn Field Color Study Lorenzo Chavez

53 Demonstration | From the Driveway Lyn Asselta 56 Demonstration | Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset Rob Adams CHAPTER 4

Working with Color.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 59 60 66 72

Seeing Color Understanding Color Basics Choosing Color Palettes Demonstration | Ghost Ranch Morning Michael Chesley Johnson 74 Demonstration | Water’s Edge Mark Mehaffey 76 Demonstration | Log Jam on the River Earn Tony Allain

79 80 86 90 91 92 94

Putting It All Together. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 101 Painting in Oil 103 Demonstration | Sunset Sailing in Newport Beach Calvin Liang 106 Painting in Acrylic 107 Demonstration | Storm in the East, Arroyo Burro Beach | Marcia Burtt 113 Demonstration | A Quiet Place | Marc Hanson 119 Painting in Pastel 122 Demonstration | Dancing with the Wind Sandra Nunes 127 Demonstration | Wild Notation, Palo Verde Wash Margaret Larlham 131 Painting in Watercolor 133 Painting in Gouache CHAPTER 7

Back to the Studio. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 134 135 Indoors Is Sometimes a Good Idea 136 Three Basic Methods 137 Demonstration | Late Snow in the Canyon Michael Chesley Johnson 146 Demonstration | Snowy Valley Michael Chesley Johnson 149 Demonstration | Paso Por Aqui Michael Chesley Johnson 151 Demonstration | Early Spring Day Michael Chesley Johnson 153 Reference Material Review Contributors. . . . . .

About the Author. .

Index. . . . . . . . . . . .

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 154 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 157 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 158

INTRODUCTION

Painting en Plein Air You’ve found your spot and set up your easel. But before putting brush to canvas, you take a moment. The sun shines brightly over the hilltops, the trees move gently in the breeze, and the fragrance of the surrounding meadow rises to greet you. Your senses waken to the beauty of the world. Now, with great pleasure, you turn to your easel and begin. This is why you paint en plein air.

Why Paint Outdoors?

Many of us might agree that painting in the studio is so much easier! You can paint in the studio any time of day, regardless of what’s happening outside your window. Weather that would strike fear in the heart of the postman causes you no concern. Plus, you can start up a pot of coffee, put on your favorite music, check your e-mail now and then, take a nap, monitor the laundry—well, you get the picture.

But without the outdoor experience, your paintings will always lack a convincing sense of sunlight and natural color harmonies. Plus, paintings made “in the wild” possess a wonderful, exciting energy that those made from photos just don’t have. And if you’re a landscape painter, don’t you just love being immersed in your subject matter? I do.

Stephen Quiller, Autumn Above Goose Creek, 2014, watercolor and gouache, 18" x 25".

Plein air. Private collection.

8 Introduction

Kim Lordier, California Chaparral and Oak, 2019, pastel, 8" x 8". Plein air.

Collection of the artist.

Many of us work in the studio from photos, but even though cameras have come a long way in recent years, you still can’t beat the human eye for sensitivity. I can see more colors and more shades of light and dark than my point-and-shoot pocket camera or smartphone. And, unlike a camera, my brain can interpret those colors and values in many ways—artistic and creative ways. But perhaps most important, thanks to my binocular vision, I can see depth and form clearly. Cameras flatten a scene into a two-dimensional image. After years of painting outdoors, I’ve trained my eyes to give me more information than any photo possibly can.

This book is here to help you with the outdoor experience and get the most from it. If you’ve never painted outdoors before, you’ll learn the basics—and as you become more skilled, the book will, in a sense, grow with you. Reread it, and you’ll always find some new piece of advice to help you along. If, on the other hand, you’re already an outdoor painter, you’ll find plenty here, too. Each of the contributors to this book is a master in his or her field and eager to share wisdom with you. They are your mentors, and they will help you find your own special path.

Margaret Larlham on location at Skiathos, Greece.

CHAPTER 1

BEFORE YOU GO OUT On a beautiful day, it’s so tempting to just grab the gear and head out. But this isn’t really the best way to go about it. You need to be prepared so you can do your best painting and get the most out of the experience.

I’ll never forget the student who, after dinner, sat relaxing in a comfortable chair on the lawn at Ghost Ranch, New Mexico. Ghost Ranch, made famous by Georgia O’Keeffe, offers the painter gorgeous, colorful cliffs and hills, and even more gorgeous sunsets. As the sun went down, the student suddenly decided to paint the sunset. Of course, she was unprepared, and by the time she had set up her gear and put brush to canvas, the beautiful evening light had vanished. This chapter will help you prepare for your outing and avoid such disappointments.

Margaret Larlham, Ruaha River Overlook, Tanzania, 2018, pastel, 18" x 12". Plein air. Artist’s collection.

D E M O N S T R AT I O N

EARLY AUTUMN BY GHOST LAKE watercolor and gouache | S T E P H E N Q U I L L E R Stephen offers thoughts on how he chooses a subject and how he uses color to emphasize mood.

Materials Sketching

Large sketchbook, at least 9 �" x 16" Gel pen

Surface

300-lb cold-press watercolor paper, at least 19" x 28"

Brushes

Watermedia flats, ¾"–2" Rounds, #7–#24

Drawing

2B drawing pencil

Watercolor Paints

Cadmium Yellow Light Cadmium Yellow Medium Naples Yellow Cadmium Red Orange Cadmium Orange Permanent Orange Quinacridone Rose Magenta Ultramarine Blue Cobalt Violet Cobalt Blue Deep Cerulean Blue Phthalo Green

Gouache Paints

Titanium White Naples Yellow Cadmium Yellow Light Cadmium Yellow Medium Blue-Violet Ultramarine Blue Cadmium Orange

1. The Scene I feel that to put my heart into a painting, I must be inspired by the landscape. I truly feel that the best subjects find me rather than me searching for them. I’ve been to this place before and was planning to come back to spend the day working on some close-up patterns of backlit aspens. Out of the corner of my eye, I noted this vista and loved the composition. Distant fires in Colorado had drifted smoke into our valley. This pushed the sky into a soft yellow and created simple layers of blue values in the mountain ranges.

The value contrast between the foreground hills and the strong color notes of the aspen told me I had to paint this.

2. Making a Working Sketch After a short time meditating and visualizing the subject, I made a quick working sketch. I focused on the spatial relationships and the geometry as well as the rhythm and the beat of the composition. It also told me the best format to use, an extended horizontal. This sketch is 9 ½" x 16", made with a gel pen.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 33

Calvin Liang, Catalina Island, 2010, oil on canvas, 20" x 30". Studio. Private collection.

CHAPTER 3

DESIGNING YOUR PAINTING EFFECTIVELY Designing in the field must be simple and intuitive, but it also depends on your goals. If you plan to create a finished work on site, design is essential. Design has two purposes: to clarify and reinforce the idea behind the painting and to make a satisfying experience for viewers. If your goal is to explore a subject, gather reference material, or work on a problem not relating to design, then designing isn’t necessary. Still, I always feel more satisfied with even a quick sketch if I make some attempt at design.

4. Washing with Alcohol to Create a Monochromatic Underpainting

5. Varying the Color

Using a small brush and 91% isopropyl alcohol, I washed over this initial layer of pastel, creating a monochromatic value study that will be used as an underpainting.

Once the underpainting dried, I chose several light-value pastels, including pinks and yellows, using them to mark areas where the light hit the ground plane and other objects in the scene.

6. Creating Greens

7. Pushing the Green Concept

Using blues in different values and temperatures, along with a few violets, I began to create the leafy areas of the trees and to place some cool shadows on the ground. I worked yellow over the existing blue in the sunlit grass to the left to create a feeling of green without actually using green. This layering has more energy and character than if I simply chose a green right out of the palette.

I added warm yellows and golds on top of the blues in the trees and bushes, pushing the concept of the feeling of green further by working with value and intensity. I could already feel the sunlight coming out in this painting.

54 Designing Your Painting Effectively

Dominance in Your Design What’s important in a design? Dominance. A painting with a clear dominance among design elements keeps equals from competing. Although many design elements can come into play, the ones most important for creating an effective sense of mood, and therefore a successful plein air painting, include value, temperature, and chroma.

For example, you might choose one value to dominate. If your scene depicts a sunny day, the light values should occupy more real estate in the painting than the others. You might choose to group both your lights and your mid-lights into the "light" bucket and let them occupy much more than 50% of the painting.

8. Pulling Back on the Contrast

I felt the painting becoming too contrasty. Wanting the feeling of bright sunlight that bounces into the shadows, I used some lighter colors, turquoise and blue, to bring down the contrast. I also defined the sky and carried some of that color down into the ground plane to brighten it up.

You can get a feeling for dominance by looking at master paintings—any of the paintings in this book, for example— and trying to determine how the artists used it. A painting lacking or weak in dominance of design elements will often come off feeling confusing or uninteresting.

9. Finishing Touches: Tying up the Darks Tying darks together in the shadows created an interesting pattern to lead the eye down to the trio of dark trees at the bottom of the hill.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 55

Complementary Color Palettes Basing a painting on a set of complementary colors (such as orange and blue) can be dramatic. But the drama can be pulled back with a more neutral version of a complement or with a split-complement (a tertiary color next to the complement on the color wheel).

Margaret Larlham, Prickly Pear, 2020, pastel on sanded paper, 12" x 16". Plein air.

Private collection.

Complementary Palette—Secondary and Tertiary Orange and blue-green, dull versions of each, make for a pleasing harmony.

Nathan Fowkes, Descanso Bridge, 2000, watercolor and gouache, 9" x 14". Plein air.

Private collection.

“

Complementary Palette—Red and Green Here, an intense red sits in the embrace of its complement, green.

Stephen Quiller, Falling Leaves Contrails, October, 2003, watercolor and casein, 32" x 23". Plein air. Private collection.

Complementary Palette—Rich and Dull The lively oranges play

against their split-complement, a dull blue-violet.

THE MASTERS ON COLOR After making a small value sketch, I squint at the color of the landscape and decide whether the underpainting should simply echo the darks of the sketch or whether I might use color contrast. Most often this would be a warm maroon for the trees, orange for the earth, and yellow for the sky.” — M A R G A R E T L A R L H A M

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 69

D E M O N S T R AT I O N

GHOST RANCH MORNING oil | M I C H A E L C H E S L E Y J O H N S O N

Quick color choices sometimes involve making your best guess.

Here’s how to follow up a best guess with adjustments.

Materials Sketching

Gouache paints Watercolor paper Viewfinder 6B graphite pencil Sketchbook

Surface

Hardboard panel primed with two coats of acrylic gesso, 9" x 12"

2. Color Study in Gouache

Brushes

I made a quick sketch at the same time of day, giving me an opportunity to study some of the light effects.

Assortment of flat hog bristle brushes, #2-#12

Oil Paints

Burnt Sienna Raw Umber Cerulean Blue Phthalo Green Titanium Zinc White Hansa Yellow Light Hansa Yellow Medium Yellow Ochre Ultramarine Blue Napthol Scarlet Permanent Alizarin Crimson

Solvent

Odorless mineral spirits

Painting Knife

Small trowel-shaped painting knife

1. The Scene I chose a backlit view of a mesa. The strong contrast between sunlight and shadow with the beautiful, warm, rich reflected lights that appear in the shadows appealed to me. Also, because of wildfires out West, a certain amount of haze increased the sense of distance in this particular scene, demonstrating how air quality can affect this attribute.

3. Thumbnail Sketch At the same time the next day, I went back. I used a viewfinder to help with composition. Using the tool as a template, I created a small rectangle on my paper with the same proportions as my larger painting surface, 9" x 12" (a ratio of 3:4), so I made the value sketch the same proportions but smaller, at 2" x 2.5". I used a 6B graphite pencil to block in a few value shapes—dark, mid-dark, mid-light and light.

A Word About Thumbnail Sketches A value sketch should be the same proportions as the painting. Making it in a small format forces you to simplify and reduce the number of shapes.

72 Working with Color

D E M O N S T R AT I O N

WATER’S EDGE acrylic | M A R K M E H A F F E Y

Color temperature helps define shadow and light, going a long way to help depict mood.

Mark shows how he plays warm against cool colors for interest.

Materials Surface

Acrylicgessoed panel, 6" x 8"

Brushes

Various short-handled brushes for watercolor and acrylic

Drawing

Water-soluble white pencil

Acrylic Paints

Alizarin Crimson Ivory Black Cobalt Blue Anthraquinone Blue Cadmium Yellow Light White Cadmium Yellow Deep Cadmium Red Light

1. Laying in the Shapes

2. Starting to Block in Color

Sometimes a lack of time is a good thing. I made this painting with a thunderstorm approaching. Knowing I didn’t have much time, I chose a 6" x 8" panel and decided just to get the gist of the scene. After toning the canvas with Alizarin Crimson and Ivory Black, I quickly drew the contours of the major shapes with a water-soluble white pencil.

I mixed Cobalt Blue and Anthraquinone Blue and varied it by adding other colors. (Anthraquinone Blue mixes darker violets and greens than other blues.) For the foreground, I used this mixture plus Cadmium Yellow Light. For the tree trunk, I used the blue mixture plus Alizarin Crimson. I roughed in the rocks along the shoreline with the blue mixture to which I had added a very small amount of white. The white slightly lightened the value and made these shapes a bit more opaque.

3. Adding the Middle Values I painted the distant shoreline and indicated some of the tree foliage with a mixture of both Anthraquinone Blue and Cobalt Blue plus small amounts of Alizarin Crimson and white. I kept the value of this mixture in the middle range, knowing that I would add the lightest lights toward the end. To warm up and bring forward the mass of leaves, I added Cadmium Yellow Deep to my blue mixture to make a warm green.

74 Working with Color

4. Moving Toward the Finish For the water, I used a mix of Anthraquinone Blue, Cadmium Yellow Light, and white. For the shadowed green of the grass, I used this same mixture but with less white, and for the sunlit grass, I added a bit more white. At this point, the painting shows a dominance of cool colors.

The sky was in reality a dark, threatening gray. But because cool colors dominated, I wanted to warm up the sky to make it a “foil” for all the cool color. I made a neutralized, warm light yellow with Cadmium Yellow Deep, a small amount of Cadmium Red Light, plus the blue-green that did not wash out of my brush, and lots of white for the sky.

I then mixed a brown from all three primary colors—Anthraquinone Blue, Cadmium Red Light, and Cadmium Yellow Deep plus white—for the picnic table and used it to add a little warmth to the left of the tree.

I quickly brushed in the skin tones and the shirts of the two figures with Cadmium Red Light right from the tube and also mixed with white.

5. The Finish I added a few highlights to the rocks. To indicate the shadow under the figures, I brushed in a mixture of Anthraquinone Blue and Alizarin Crimson. (These two colors make a very dark violet that is better than black.)

After the painting dried, I used a wet bristle brush to rub off all the remaining white pencil lines. From start to finish, this painting took about forty-five minutes. The rain hit as I was packing up.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 75

4. Establishing Background and Main Foreground Masses I established the sky using a combination of cool blues and a hint of warm yellow. This allowed me to sculpt around the tree line and form the silhouette of the far landscape. I added a few sky holes and scumbled in some light passages of olive greens to show the mass of vegetation in front of the main body of trees. A few dark- and medium-value marks show the bulk of the fallen tree trunk, which makes up most of the log jam. I observed the large clump of earth and grasses mixed in with the debris and sketched it in.

5. Adding Reflections and Warm Color Notes After painting the local color of the exposed dry riverbed, I added a patch of warm orange and a lighter value to this area, hoping that it would be a good base for the small amount of detail to follow. Then, starting at the horizon line, I laid in the final layer and details of the river stones. I used different values of the same color family to keep uniformity in this area.

I indicated the sky reflection and dappled light created by the movement of the shallow water with a lighter value blue. Now I shifted my attention to the foreground. A mass of detail can sometimes be confusing, so it is always important to squint and pick out only the important shapes and values. I always paint what I see and not what I know is there.

6. Adding Effects and the Finish This is the icing-on-the-cake stage. I could relax and enjoy the final mark making. I used my little finger to blend here and there, softening some of the hard edges in the shadows. I used a warm ochre pastel to indicate the destruction of the broken bark that had been ripped away from the tree and vegetation that had traveled the full distance of the river from several miles away. A few strokes of the edge of a light gray pastel completed this small plein air painting.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 77

Marc Hanson, Morning Drive, 2013, acrylic on panel, 9" x 12". Plein air. Private collection.

CHAPTER 5

REFINING AND FINISHING You’ve spent time working out ideas with value sketches. After finally settling on one, you copied the design over to your painting surface. You blocked in shapes, not worrying too much about getting colors exactly right. Next, after comparing your painting to the scene, you created a mental priority list of what needed adjusting. Because time was passing, you started with the most urgent first. Now you can step back and congratulate yourself. But what else needs to be done?

“

THE MASTERS ON FINISHING AND REWORKING I really love to rework my paintings. I always take a photo of the scene, which I use to work from when I am back in the studio.”

— C A LV I N L I A N G

Calvin Liang, Santa Barbara Harbor, 2012, oil on canvas, 12" x 16". Plein air. Private collection.

Linear Perspective and Scale The pier creates a set of lines that heads towards a vanishing point and gives a feeling of depth. Additionally, the sails of the boats, which get smaller as they go off into the distance, provide a sense of scale for the distant headland.

Marc Hanson, January Skies, 2020, acrylic on canvas, 24" x 36". Studio.

Collection of the artist.

Cloud Size Diminishes with Distance These clouds

are similar in size, yet seem to get smaller with distance.

For the closest clouds, the viewer sees more bottom, but in the distance, more of the sides. The brushstrokes used to depict the clouds also follow cross-contour lines, creating form.

Lines Formed by Natural Objects The stream twists here

and there, but still displays a sense of narrowing as it goes into the distance, correctly following the rules of linear perspective.

Kim Lordier, Into the Light, Toyon Bay, 2019, pastel, 12" x 12". Plein air. Private collection.

82 Refining and Finishing

Tony Allain, Richmond NZ, 2012, pastel on sanded board, 12" x 16". Plein air. Private collection.

Small, Sharp Marks at the Center of Interest Let your eye rove over the painting, and you’ll find resting areas in the almost-smooth areas of sky, mountain and beach. But at the center of interest, the marks change to sharp, abrupt strokes—a magnet for the eye.

Calvin Liang, Small Boats, oil on canvas, 8" x 10". Plein air.

Marks Following Form Whereas vertical and diagonal

brushstrokes create the forms of the boats, the artist has painted the water with horizontal strokes, which follow the surface of the water. This creates a feeling of restful, flat water.

Similar Marks Everywhere This artist makes loose, impressionistic strokes with pastel throughout the painting, so they don’t pull the eye to a particular place. Yet the piece has a feeling of unity because of this approach. So how does she pull the eye to the center of interest? With the sharp edges of the tall dome of the building against the sky.

Sandra Nunes, Ferry Boat Station, 2019, pastel on sanded paper, 20 cm x 30 cm.

Plein air. Private collection.

Vertical Strokes Introduce Calm and Height

The short, even, vertical strokes in the sky impart a sense of calm, height, and space.

Michael Chesley Johnson, Autumn Backlit, 2016, oil, 6" x 12". Plein air. Collection of the artist.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 89

4. Moving to the Foreground Whenever I choose a subject, the foreground is normally the most important part of the painting. Because it’s closest to the viewer, I always take my time and give thought to this area before starting.

I try to develop a strong visual image in my mind by considering the weaknesses and strengths of the scene and by doing some mental photoshopping of shapes and possible changes.

Even though the foreground sand dune shadows look easy to paint, I considered them the most difficult part. If the tonal contrast wasn’t correct, the light effect would suffer; I had to decide if I was painting the shadows light enough or dark enough.

Because quite a bit of light from the sky reflected into this area, subtlety was the key.

5. The Finish As I approached the finish, I tried to get in as much detail as I could. However, I’m always careful not to have brushes in hand for too long, as I can easily overwork the painting. Back in the studio, I like to work on it a bit more, checking my primary focal point, the smallest shapes, perhaps adding or removing some detail. It’s the subtle nuances that will lift a painting up to the next level.

I prefer to finish the painting while it is still wet; this is the best time to make alterations. In this piece, especially in the background, my early shapes lacked the nuance I was searching for. I adjusted the small light shapes on the headland to increase the visual interest and to help define the headland’s shape.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 95

Rob Adams, Newport, 2016, Oil, 10" x 16". Plein air. Private collection.

CHAPTER 6

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER In this chapter, each master shares details on his or her general painting process. Each artist, even if working in the same medium as another, uses a unique approach to the process of painting en plein air, but of course, there are common themes throughout, such as sketching, design, values, textures, edges, and color.

9. Harmonizing Colors I worked my way down to the horizon, adding the greenish tones for harmony. Notice how the touches of pink mix contribute to the happy, romantic feeling of the painting. I added the lightest tones to the sails, mixing in touches of yellows and other warm colors, which tied these light areas to the rest of the painting. The cooler tones behind the sails made this focal area glow with a luminous light.

10. The Finish: Making Smart Choices I slowed down, thinking carefully about each choice, making sure it would contribute to the feeling I wanted. If I overworked the painting at this point, I would lose the freshness. I made a few adjustments to colors and tones to strengthen the rhythm and to increase the contrast where needed. Finally, I sharpened some edges around the sails and with a small brush, put in a few last details, such as the details of the figures.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 105

Marc Hanson, Rising Tide, Morning, 2020, acrylic, 11" x 14". Plein air. Collection of the artist.

MARC HANSON I take my time looking for artistic interest. Once I’ve found it, I determine what I want to showcase. A painting has to say just one thing—a fact that has become clearer to me with every painting.

Next, I look for the patterns of light and dark, strongest color, sharpest edges, and lines of direction. I consider how to present my idea to its fullest. What should be played down or up? What should be moved, altered, sharpened, or lost? I try to plan ahead, but painting outside throws changes at me constantly.

I don’t make a preliminary sketch unless I’m not clear about an idea. Most often, I’ll compose with my fingers held in the shape of a rectangle to form a viewfinder. I visualize all the elements before starting, which gives me a mental road map for the painting.

I might start in any number of ways. Sometimes, an impressionistic block in is what I need first. It might be a transparent or opaque block in, either monochromatic or full color. Other times, if the weather’s moving fast, I’ll paint 112 Putting It All Together

directly and head for the finish. The idea of the painting dictates the approach.

I’m finished when I’ve stated my idea—or when the weather or bugs run me off. If my goal was a color notation, I may be done in minutes. If a full-blown painting, I stop when I’m not sure what to do next. To keep from overworking, I quit when I’m about 80% done.

D E M O N S T R AT I O N

WILD NOTATION, PALO VERDE WASH pastel | M A R G A R E T L A R L H A M

Margaret shows how she captures the “whiskery” character of a palo verde tree.

Materials Sketching

Graphite Vine charcoal Small sketchbook

Surface

Panel primed with umber pastel primer, 18" x 24"

Pastels

Variety of hard and soft pastels

Viewfinder 1. The Scene

The silhouette of a mature palo verde tree presiding grandly over a wash with the desert vegetation below it caught my attention. Before I began, I noted, as I always do, the location, time, and weather: Anza-Borrego Desert, March 2018, 3:00-5:00 p.m., cloudy and overcast with late sunshine.

2. Composition Using a viewfinder with proportions identical to the panel (3:4), I selected my view. I made a small value sketch of the same proportions in graphite, reducing the complex view to simple shapes in three values: the dark shapes of the tree and mountains; set against the toned paper, which acted as my mid-value; and for the lightest value, a touch of light pastel for the sky.

3. Planning Structure With a stick of vine charcoal and using the value sketch as a guide, I mapped out the edges and skeleton of the tree, wash, road, mountains, and sky.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 127

Michael Chesley Johnson, Autumn Splendor, 2019, pastel, 20" x 28". Studio. Private collection.

CHAPTER 7

BACK TO THE STUDIO Outdoors or indoors? Sometimes you’re torn. Plein air painting often limits us in size and scope.

Studio painting often limits us in references we can draw upon. But what if we combine the two?

Accept the limits of plein air painting but understand that your studio space can be a great resource for pushing those limits. The studio offers a quiet place to consider our less-than-satisfactory outdoor paintings and to improve on or learn from them. It also gives us the opportunity to take our studies and other reference materials and rework them into masterpieces.

8. The Finish

Michael Chesley Johnson, Snowy Valley, oil, 12" x 16". Plein air and studio.

Keeping the foreground simple, I added a few short, linear marks to indicate rows in fallow fields with a painting knife. I lightened the cast cloud shadows. In the sunny areas, I added tints of Permanent Orange to add warmth to some of the snow and where old vegetation caught the sun. Finally, I added hints of this same tint to the clouds and the sunny parts of the hills.

Method 3: Start in the Field, Return to the Studio, Finish in the Field Head to the field and paint until you feel finished. Then head to the studio to look at problems and find solutions. Return to the field to put the solutions in place. The advantage of this method is that it maintains the freshness of a plein air painting because you’ll do the finishing work in the field after having plenty of studio time to analyze any problems.

1. Start in the Field You might only get as far as the block in, leaving the painting as a series of simple shapes, either in monochrome or color. This is a good approach if you’re trying to work out the design, values, or color harmony. If you don’t want to work with color yet, you can simply sketch shapes and write down notes about color.

2. Back in the Studio Preferably without consulting reference material, look at the elements you’ve put down thus far and troubleshoot as needed. You can modify the design or even

148 Back to the Studio

change the color palette. Work with the understanding that you’re trying to achieve a certain effect or capture a particular mood or moment rather than painting a detailed portrait of the landscape.

3. Back to the Field for the Finish Try not to alter anything you did in the studio, but rather focus on those last things, such as aerial perspective, edges, mark making, etc. This option really works. You can take your canvas into the field and get all the color notes and drawing you need, and then take it to the studio to make corrections and refinements—and then return to the field to get the last bit of information you need to pull it all together. I often find that this final visit comes down to getting the color temperature contrasts correct or adding a few important details. Best is if you can return to the site at the same time of day with the same weather or tide conditions. For example, out in the American Southwest, where I enjoy days of blue sky and sun, no problem; but in the Canadian Maritimes, I’m unlikely to get two days in a row of the same weather. And there the tide times shift by fifty minutes a day, too!

CONTRIBUTORS

Rob Adams / United Kingdom Born to artistic parents, Rob Adams showed artistic talent early on. After receiving a degree in fine arts, he embarked on a career in book illustration. Later, he designed sets for film, television, and theater before turning to theme park design. In 2006, he gave up commercial work to paint.

A member of the Wapping Group of Artists, he has exhibited with the Royal Society of Marine Artists, the Royal Watercolour Society, and other groups. He was named a finalist for the 2013 Artist of the Year by Artists & Illustrators magazine. Adams lives in Dorset. www.treeshark.com

Tony Allain / United Kingdom A contributor to Pastel Journal and Artists Magazine, Tony is a member of the Master Circle of the International Association of Pastel Societies and holds signature membership in many other groups. His paintings have been exhibited with the Royal Society of Marine Artists, Pastel Society UK, Pastel Society of America, and China Biennial International Pastel Exhibition; and have been featured in many publications. Allain, who teaches workshops and juries shows for national and international exhibitions, lives in Scotland. www.tonyallainfineart.com

Photo by Jackie Hird.

Lyn Asselta / United States A Maine native, Lyn Asselta has

exhibited her paintings throughout the United States and abroad.

As a workshop instructor, she has taught in Canada, Curaçao, and across the United States. Designated an Eminent Pastelist by the International Association of Pastel Societies, Pastel Society of America Master Pastelist, and member of the Salmagundi Club, she is also the founder of the First Coast Pastel Society in Florida.

In 2009, she was selected as an Artist-in-Residence at Acadia National Park. Her work has been featured in Pastel Journal, PleinAir, and Pratique des Arts. She lives on the Maine coast. www.lynasselta.com

Marcia Burtt / United States After Burtt graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, she earned a Master of Arts from the University of Montana. Landscape painting helped her develop a passionate commitment to conserving land threatened by development. Since 1986, she has worked with The Oak Group to record unspoiled vistas and raise money to save open spaces.

Her paintings have been featured in many books and magazines, including PleinAir. Her paintings hang in both public and private collections across the United States, such as the Forbes Collection and the MD Anderson Cancer Center. She lives in California. www.marciaburtt.com 154 Contributors

Lorenzo Chavez / United States Born in New Mexico, Chavez has been a professional artist for thirty-five years. He’s had exhibitions and has won many honors from groups like the Pastel Society of America, California Art Club, American Impressionist Society, Société des Pastellistes de France, and the Pastel Society of Spain. Many collections include his work, such as the Western History Collection at the Denver Public Library, Hockaday Museum of Art, and the Koshare Museum. He’s been featured in Southwest Art and other publications. He lives in Colorado. www.lorenzochavez.com

Nathan Fowkes / United States Fowkes is an animation artist whose clients include DreamWorks Animation, Disney, and others. As a fine artist, he has had his watercolor work featured in numerous publications as well as in solo and group exhibitions. The author of How to Draw Portraits in Charcoal and How to Paint Landscapes Quickly and Beautifully in Watercolor and Gouache, he is well known as a teacher of color, light, and design. A regular guest lecturer at ArtCenter College of Design, he has taught at the Los Angeles Academy of Figurative Art and Laguna College of Art and Design. He lives in California. www.nathanfowkes.com

Marc Hanson / United States Born to a military family, in his youth, Hanson lived in many states, as well as Norway. He studied illustration at the ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California. A Master Signature Member of Oil Painters of America and a Signature Member of Plein Air Painters of the Southeast, he has won many honors including several Awards of Excellence in the Oil Painters of America National Exhibition, Best of Show in the National Oil & Acrylic Painters Society International Exhibition, among others. He lives in Tybee Island, Georgia. www.marchansonart.com

Margaret Larlham / United States Born in South Africa, Larlham taught at the University of Natal, Durban, and later San Diego State University, as a professor of theater. While teaching, she constantly practiced as a painter. Her pastels enjoy national and international acclaim, and she is a Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America and a member of the Master Circle of the International Association of Pastel Societies. Recent awards include the Artists & Illustrators award (Pastel Society UK), First Place in the Les Pastellistes exhibition in Montreal, and a Bronze award at the 2019 International Association of Pastel Societies Master Circle Exhibition. She lives in California. www.margaretlarlham.com

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 155

Calvin Liang / United States Born in China, Liang graduated from Shanghai Academy of Fine Arts, moved to the United States in 1987, and worked in animation for The Walt Disney Company and Nickelodeon. In 2002, he left to paint full-time. He has won many awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Laguna Plein Air Painting Invitational and the Bronze Medal Award in the National Juried Exhibition of Oil Painters of America. His work has appeared in Art of the West, American Art Collector, and elsewhere. A Master Signature Member of Oil Painters of America and the American Impressionist Society, he lives in California. www.calvinliangfineart.com

Kim Lordier / United States Lordier received her Bachelor of Fine Arts in Illustration at the Academy of Art University, San Francisco.

Her paintings are in private collections and have been exhibited at many venues such as the Autry Museum of the American West and The National Arts Club. They have been featured in PleinAir, Art of the West, Southwest Art and elsewhere. She has won many honors at major plein air events and international magazine competitions. A Signature member of many societies, including the Pastel Society of America, she is a Distinguished Pastelist of the Pastel Society of the West Coast and conducts workshops across the country. She lives in California. www.kimfancherlordier.com

Mark E. Mehaffey / United States Mehaffey is a Signature member

and Dolphin Fellow of the American Watercolor Society. He has won major awards including the Silver Medal of Honor and the Arches Paper Award from the American Watercolor Society. In 2016, the Transparent Watercolor Society of America named him Distinguished Master. The author of Creative Watercolor and Acrylic Workshop and En Plein Air Acrylic, he has created many videos and appeared in many publications.

His paintings are included in many public and private collections, and he is a popular juror, workshop instructor, and lecturer. He lives in Michigan. www.markmehaffeyfineart.com

Sandra Nunes / Brazil With a Bachelor of Arts and Letters from Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, award-winning artist Sandra Nunes was exposed to great art while traveling abroad. Her favorite subjects are found in her hometown of Rio de Janeiro. She interprets in a passionate mood the effects of light and relationships between shapes and colors. Nunes teaches plein air painting workshops and life drawing in her studio and around the world. Her work can be found in several public and private collections across South America, United States, Canada, Europe, and Australia. www.sandranunes.com

156 Contributors

Stephen Quiller / United States A professional painter since 1972, Stephen Quiller is an internationally known artist and a Dolphin Fellow of the American Watercolor Society as well as a Signature member of many other organizations. Recipient of the 2018 Silver Medal of Honor and the 2014 Gold Medal of Honor from the American Watercolor Society, he has written several books and created twenty instructional videos. He’s juried many watermedia exhibitions and conducts national and international seminars annually. He and his wife Marta live in Creede, Colorado. www.quillergallery.com

Colley Whisson / Australia Born and raised in northern regions of Brisbane, Australia, Whisson began oil painting at twenty years old under the guidance of his artist father and had his first solo exhibition at age twenty-four. Since then, he has held numerous solo and joint exhibitions.

He has written for several magazines including International Artist and is the author of the books Creating Impressionist Landscapes in Oil and Impressionist Painting Made Easy. With two demonstration DVDs, he has taught both locally and internationally and has won many awards. www.colleywhisson.com

About the Author Michael Chesley Johnson / United States Michael paints the American Southwest, coastal Maine, and the Canadian Maritimes.

He has been invited to events such as the Grand Canyon Celebration of Art repeatedly. He writes frequently for Artists Magazine, Pastel Journal, PleinAir, and Watercolor Artist; and he also teaches plein air painting workshops across the United States. A Signature Member of the American Impressionist Society, the Pastel Society of America, and a Master Signature Member of Pastel Artists Canada, he splits his year between New Mexico and the Canadian Maritimes. www.mchesleyjohnson.com

Acknowledgments I want to thank all the contributors to this book and for their patience with my requests. I also want to thank the great artists over the centuries who went before me and upon whose shoulders I stand. Were it not for them, I wouldn’t be the painter I am today. And thank you to my students, who taught me as much as I taught them. Finally, thank you, Trina, for you encouraged me to do the things that needed doing and things I hoped to do . . . things I might not have done otherwise.

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 157

INDEX

A

abstraction 25, 37 acrylic painting/demonstrations about 14, 106–118 Fall Reflections (Mehaffey) 98–99 materials 20–21 A Quiet Place (Hanson) 113–117 Storm in the East, Arroyo Burro Beach (Burtt) 107–111 Water’s Edge (Mehaffey) 74–75 Adams, Rob demonstration 56–57 Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset 56–57 Lower Town Fishguard 66 Newport 100 On the Rocks at Osmington Mills 83 Piddletrenthide 31 Shaftesbury Mist 40 Snow on Gold Hill 32 Thames at Hammersmith 101 Tide Coming in Weymouth Beach 43 tips and quotes 16, 83, 101 aerial perspective 84–85 al fresco, defined 9 Allain, Tony Clonque Cottage, Guernsey 67 demonstration 76–77 Devils Cauldron 119 The Gap 48 Log Jam on the River Earn 76–77 Nelson Yacht Club 37 Richmond NZ 89 tips and quotes 18, 39, 88, 119 Toward Delaware Bay 32 Wet Sand 25 alla prima painting 9 angles 29, 40–42, 80–81 art materials 15–23 acrylic painting 20–21 easels 15 gouache painting 23 oil painting 16–17 pastel painting 18–20 watercolor painting 22 Asselta, Lyn Back to Boothbay 26 A Cold Tide 90 demonstration 53–55 Easter Morning 64 Emerald Water 120 From the Driveway 53–55 Before the Plow 63 Sun on the Boulder 48 tips and quotes 18, 48, 64, 120 Where River Meets Rock 37 atmospheric perspective 84–85 au premier coup, defined 9 158 Index

B

balance beam design 48 buildings, indicating scale with 83 Burtt, Marcia demonstration 107–111 Green Pastures 85 Incoming 27 Mendocino Overlook 106 Midday on the Slough 58 Morning Shadows, Fish Creek Wash 62 Ruffled Water, High Tide 48 Storm in the East, Arroyo Burro Beach 107–111 Sundown, Alamo Ranch, #2 91 tips and quotes 13, 20, 106, 111

C

calm 27, 32 Carlson, John F. 38, 40–42, 80 Carlson’s Guide to Landscape Painting (Carlson) 38, 40, 80 center of interest 49 Chavez, Lorenzo Afternoon Light 27 Arroyo in New Mexico 87 Autumn Field Color Study 51–52 Autumn Leaves 63 Cherry Creek Near Scott Gulch 41 A Colorado Winter 64 demonstration 51–52 Field Patterns in Winter 90 Hint of Autumn 49 Sunlight and Shadows 101 tips and quotes 16, 41, 101 chroma 60, 64–65 close-up abstraction 37 clouds 45, 46, 47, 82 color 58–77 chroma 60, 64–65 color temperature 60, 61–63 color wheel 60 demonstrations 72–77 knowing when you’re done 79 palettes 66–71 properties of 60 seeing 59 studio painting and 135 color isolators 59 color note sketches 59 color studies 51–52, 153 color temperature 60, 61–63 color wheel 60 complementary palettes 69

contrast 84, 85 cross-contour lines 81

D

demonstrations Autumn Field Color Study (Chavez) 51–52 Berlin Cathedral (Fowkes) 92–93 Coastal Sand Dunes, Australia (Whisson) 94–95 Dancing with the Wind (Nunes) 122–125 Early Autumn by Ghost Lake (Quiller) 33–35 Early Spring Day (Johnson) 151–152 Fall Reflections (Mehaffey) 98–99 From the Driveway (Asselta) 53–55 Ghost Ranch Morning (Johnson) 72–73 June Lake Loop Aspens (Lordier) 96–97 Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset (Adams) 56–57 Late Snow in the Canyon (Johnson) 137–142 Log Jam on the River Earn (Allain) 76–77 Paso Por Aqui (Johnson) 149–150 A Quiet Place (Hanson) 113–117 Snowy Valley (Johnson) 146–148 Storm in the East, Arroyo Burro Beach (Burtt) 107–111 Sunset Sailing in Newport Beach (Liang) 103–105 Water’s Edge (Mehaffey) 74–75 Wild Notation, Palo Verde Wash (Larlham) 127–129 design 36–57 abstraction 37 center of interest 49 demonstrations 51–57 edges 44 shapes 45–48 thumbnail sketches 50 values 38–43 direct painting 9 distant abstraction 37 dominance 63, 79 done, knowing when you’re 79 drawings 153

E

easels 15 edges 44, 79, 84, 86–87, 90 expanded palettes 71

F

figures, indicating scale with 83 finishing. see refining and finishing fog 84 Fowkes, Nathan Bay Storm 66 Berlin Cathedral 92–93 Briarwood Drive View 131 demonstration 92–93 Descanso Bridge 69 Descanso Gardens 26 Florence Hillside 42 Shell Beach Cliffside 83 tips and quotes 22, 43, 70, 71, 93, 131 Warsaw Clock Tower 43

G

gear 14 Ghost Ranch 10, 72–73 goals 11–13, 135 gouache painting/demonstrations about 14, 133 Berlin Cathedral (Fowkes) 92–93 Early Autumn by Ghost Lake (Quiller) 33–35 materials 23 Grand Canyon National Park 11, 13, 29

H

Hanson, Marc Darkening Skies 27 Dark Notes 32 demonstration 113–117 Dune Crows 66 January Skies 82 Moving Shadows 41 A Quiet Place 113–117 Rising Tide 112 This Morning 47 tips and quotes 12, 21, 46, 112, 118, 145 haze 42, 63 hues 60

I

indirect painting 9 indoor painting. see studio painting

J

Johnson, Michael Chesley After the Rain 9 Autumn Backlit 89 Canyon Trails 49 demonstrations 72–73, 137–142, 146–152 Early Spring Day 151–152 Fish Houses, Peggy’s Cove 88 Ghost Ranch Morning 72–73 gouache on cold-press watercolor paper 67 Juniper Study 23 Late Snow in the Canyon 137–142 Mohave Point Morning 13 Paso Por Aqui 149–150 Rain Over the River 67 Rolling Fog 84 Snowy Valley 146–148 Spring in the Canyon 136 tips and quotes 23, 133 Twisted Tree 133 Waterfall 11

K

knowing when you’re done 79

L

land, mark making for 88 Larlham, Margaret Cactus Mardigras 44 Canyon Cauldron 87 Chia 91 demonstration 127–129 Into Blue, Borrego Springs 41 Luminous Way, Mission Trails Preserve 126 Prickly Pear 69 Ruaha River Overlook 24 Seeds of Change 64 Skiathos, Greece 10 tips and quotes 19, 69, 126 Wild Notation, Palo Verde Wash 127–129 Liang, Calvin demonstration 103–105 Incoming Tide 32 Mission San Jose, San Antonio 65

Montage 102 Santa Barbara Harbor 82 Shadow and Light, Laguna Beach 25 Small Boats 89 Sunset Sailing in Newport Beach 103–105 tips and quotes 17, 47, 60, 82, 102 light 25, 62 linear perspective 80–83 Lordier, Kim Autumn Fairies 143 Bedecked in Gold 130 Bishop Creek Aspens 143 California Chaparral and Oak 8 California Coastal Haze 63 Catalina Wild Side 31 Cypress Cove 44 demonstration 96–97 Evening’s Retreat, Zion 62 Into the Light, Toyon Bay 82 Intrinsic Beauty 144 June Lake Loop Aspens 96–97 Kaleidoscope Carpet 87 tips and quotes 19, 44, 97, 130

M

mark making 79, 88–89 medium, selecting 14 Mehaffey, Mark Back Road 118 Clouds Over the Bay 46 demonstrations 74–75, 98–99 Fall Oak 90 Fall Reflections 98–99 Love the Country 85 Morning Glow 65 November Day 68 Painted Fall 12 Summer Beginning 46 tips and quotes 21, 65, 98, 118 Water’s Edge 74–75 melancholy mood 32 memory 153 monochromatic palettes 66 moods 31–32 mysterious mood 32

N

Newtonian color wheel 60 Nunes, Sandra Dancing with the Wind 122–125 demonstration 122–125 Ferry Boat Station 89

Beautiful Landscape Painting Outdoors 159

Masters of the Sea, First Lights 46 Rock My Soul 121 Sugar Loaf Mountain 68 tips and quotes 20, 68, 121, 122, 125 Yacht Club 28

O

oil painting/demonstrations about 14, 101–105 Autumn Field Color Study (Chavez) 51–52 Coastal Sand Dunes, Australia (Whisson) 94–95 Early Spring Day (Johnson) 151–152 Ghost Ranch Morning (Johnson) 72–73 Kimmeridge Bay, Dorset (Adams) 56–57 Late Snow in the Canyon (Johnson) 137–142 materials 16–17 Snowy Valley (Johnson) 146–148 Sunset Sailing in Newport Beach (Liang) 103–105

P

paintings, defined 153 palettes 66–71 pastel painting/demonstrations about 14, 119–130 Dancing with the Wind (Nunes) 122–125 From the Driveway (Asselta) 53–55 June Lake Loop Aspens (Lordier) 96–97 Log Jam on the River Earn (Allain) 76–77 materials 18–20 palettes 70 Paso Por Aqui (Johnson) 149–150 Wild Notation, Palo Verde Wash (Larlham) 127–129 Payne, Edgar 47 people, and setting up 30 photos 153 plein air painting. see also preparing for plein air painting; specific topics about 9 advantages of 8 studio finishing and 135 preparing for plein air painting 10–24 art materials 15–23 goals 11–13 importance of 10 tips 14 160 Index

Q

Quiller, Stephen Autumn, Loch Morar, View of Bracorin 132 Autumn Above Goose Creek 8, 45 demonstration 33–35 Early Autumn by Ghost Lake 33–35 Falling Leaves Contrails 69 High Valley, Upper Huerfano 85 Lily Pond at Botanical Garden at St. Andrews 65 Night Breeze 43 Ousel Bird, Hidden Falls 83 Portrait of Hidden Falls #1 29 tips and quotes 22, 61, 85, 132

R

reference material 11, 153 refining and finishing 78–99 aerial perspective 84–85 demonstrations 92–99 edges 86–87 finishing or reworking 91 knowing when you’re done 79 linear perspective 80–83 mark making 88–89 unity of effect 90 Rule of Thirds 49

S

scale 81–83 see, learning to 25 seeing color 59 setting up 29–30 shadows 25, 30, 62 shapes 25, 45–48 six-color palettes 68 sketches 50, 59, 153 sky 27, 82, 88 snow 32, 41, 137–142, 146–148 split-primary palettes 68 squinting 37, 43, 69, 119, 121, 131 studies 51–52, 153 studio painting 134–153 advantages of 134–135 demonstrations 137–143, 146–152 method 1 136–144 method 2 145–148 method 3 148–152 reference material 153 subject, picking 26–28 sun 12, 30

T

Theory of Angles 40–42 third dimension, installing 80–85 Thirds, Rule of 49 three-color palettes 67–68 thumbnail sketches 50 time of day 29 Titanium White 71 tonal interest 31 trees 45, 133 triangle design 48

U

U design 48 unity of effect 79, 90 upbeat mood 32

V

value 25, 38–43, 60, 101 value sketches 50 vertical strokes 89 video 153 visual experiences 12, 145

W

water, mark making for 88 watercolor painting/demonstrations about 14, 131–132 Berlin Cathedral (Fowkes) 92–93 Early Autumn by Ghost Lake (Quiller) 33–35 materials 22 palettes 71 weather 40 Whisson, Colley Coastal Sand Dunes, Australia 94–95 Collecting Flowers 62 demonstration 94–95 On the Water’s Edge 91 Rowboats in Straithes, England 47 Sunlit Steps 79 tips and quotes 17, 40, 102 The Town Hall, Australia 102 white 71 wildlife, indicating scale with 83 wind 30, 122–125

Y

yellow 61

Z

Zinc White 71

• PAINTING

Fall in love with painting outdoors!

Enjoy the scenery and seize the moment with this treasury of advice from top plein air painter Michael Chesley Johnson and fourteen more of today’s best outdoor artists: Rob Adams Tony Allain Lyn Asselta Marcia Burtt Lorenzo Chavez

Nathan Fowkes Marc Hanson Margaret Larlham Calvin Liang Kim Lordier

Mark Mehaffey Sandra Nunes Stephen Quiller Colley Whisson

Learn how to set a goal before you go out—to explore a new area, gather references, practice a skill, or create a finished piece—then use the methods in this book to say what you want to say with your art.

• Materials, site selection and practical tips for painting outdoors • Values, edges, shapes, composition and color • Secrets to refining and finishing while keeping the freshness alive • Bringing outdoor studies back into the studio • 20 complete start-to-finish demonstrations • Hundreds of gorgeous images

62680cvr.indd 1

$28.99 US • $43.50 CAN ISBN 978-1-68462-045-6

MICHAEL CHESLEY JOHNSON

BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPE PAINTING OUTDOORS mastering plein air

Get Creative 6

Nothing can replace the authenticity and freshness of stepping outside into the field, taking it all in, and capturing the feeling of being there with your art.

Whether you’re a beginner or you want to expand your skills and techniques, this is your must-have guide to painting beautiful landscapes outdoors.

BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPE PAINTING OUTDOORS | MICHAEL CHESLEY JOHNSON

ART TECHNIQUES

2021-10-06 2:38 PM