Spring 2018 Acrylic Class

Spring 2018 Acrylic Project: Magnolia Week 3

This week we started adding some of the detail and brighter highlights to our flower and stems and it is really starting to take shape now. I should be finished with this in the next session or two but you take all the time you need to finish to your painting.

Just as I was doing last week I was using the center lavender and adding white to it to make a lighter color, I am STILL not using white, just a very, very light lavender.

With my reference photo in front of me (some of you are still not using your reference photo and it has all the information you need on it) and using my #4 flat bristle brush (it is old and looks more like a filbert with a rounded end), I start in the lightest area of a petal, such as the bump in the top petal, and blend using the dry brush technique (little paint or water on the brush and scrub it on). By lifting the brush to lighten the pressure I can control the amount of paint that comes off the brush so I can blend it into the darker parts of the petal. 

The one thing you want to be aware of is you are not going to go over all of the petal with each new layer. What we did before becomes shadow and texture so you do want to save some of those colors to give you flower a 3rd dimension. Work you way around the petals this way starting in the light area and blending them into darker areas.

The light branch color has a bit of the lavender in it plus more sienna and white to crate a brighter highlight, this color goes on the top with slightly rounded strokes. the green is sap green, yellow and a touch of white and any mud on my brush and using rounded strokes when painting. the new growth is sienna, orange and yellow.

Try to get you painting to this point by next class because we are nearing the finish line and it will come faster than you think. 

Keep painting and I will see you in class.