"Ice Plant Droop" Reconciled
oil on stretched canvas, 24" x 30"
This painting has been under attack daily since I first posted it a few days ago.
There was much to resolve . . . . . ."It is hard to drain the swamp when you are up to your ass in aligators!" says the silly proverb . . . .but it is true. When attempting to correct something which has to do with design, one needs to not be distracted by subject. But, alas, I was once again.
Then again, I needed to resolve some significant color issues so that all parts of the piece related. Here are a few items I modified;
Gathered together some of the big "blotches' of ice plant to form a single large shape.
Attempted to create more of a green dominance in the ice plant to set up the red contrasts.
Worked on temperature variations throughout the entire piece.
Related one cliff face to the other via color and value.
Reduced the sweetness of the background trees by graying them considerably.
Attemted to set up more of an atmospheric sense in the entire painting via gradations, intensity modifications and reduced value contrasts as the viewer moved back into the picture space.
Warmed up the forground cypress bush from cold alizirin crimson to a warmer harmonic of colors using alizirin as a base and adding yellow and green for warmth.
There are plenty more things . . .and I noticed that I don't think particularly clearly when I am unsure of what to do next . . .this painting was entirely from a sketch without photo references or being on the site.
This one has been waking me from slumber, too. I just had to get it done!
Labels: California Landscape, Color, Corrections, Design, Repairing a painting, seascape, solutions, Studio Painting
