This painting started life as a challenge for a watercolour workshop I was conducting with Driffield Art Club. They are a talented bunch of artists so I wanted to give them something to get them thinking. The painting incorporated several different techniques and I was pleased how it turned out. It had to be a large one so everybody could see. This is the painting in its original form entitled 'Cascade of Light':
After the workshop I went home and hung the framed painting on my bedroom wall. I left it there for a couple of weeks and looked at it constantly. I do this quite often so I can see if any improvements can be made. There were certainly parts of this painting that I liked but generally the painting was a bit one toned which made it appear bland. There was no drama in it and I started to find the gap in the middle irritating. It split the painting into two halves and led the viewer straight through and out of the scene. That was the obvious starting point when I got it back in my studio. Once the gap was filled the painting started to take shape and make more sense. I added more trees and changed the tones of others to create more depth and space. Finally I made the reflections more exciting by emphasising the light and darks. The painting has more depth and the eye is now persuaded to wander through the trees before heading back to the light. I suppose the moral is never give give up on a painting and if you spoil it altogether you haven't lost anything! Incidentally the workshop went well and some excellent paintings were produced.
RSS Feed
