George Inness (1825 – 1894) was one of the top American landscape painters known for his ability to depict atmosphere, mood and emotion through his paintings. His paintings are very unique and few artists seem to have been able to produce some atmospheric displays. He was a figurehead of what is known as the tonalist movement. The … Read more
Mountains form an interesting component of many landscape paintings. They are large, dominant shapes that you can use to really set the foundation of your composition. But many beginners seem to struggle with how to paint mountains. In this post, I will give you some tips for painting mountains with depth. I cover: Mountains Are … Read more
If you want to learn how to oil paint, here are some of the oil painting techniques which you will need to learn. You will not need to use all these techniques in your paintings, but it is important to at least have an awareness of them. I cover: 1. Scumbling Scumbling is the technique … Read more
Here is another quick painting tutorial based on the beautiful New Zealand landscape. All up the painting took about an hour – it was only a quick study. This is the reference photo I painted from: What I like about this photo is the sharp contrast between the dark elements and the light, distant mountains. … Read more
The focal point in art is one of the most important concepts you will need to learn as an artist. It is a key point of interest in your painting that you want to direct attention towards. It should be your most interesting point in the painting. Do You Need a Focal Point? It is … Read more
Complementary colors are basically colors that are on directly opposite sides of the color wheel. So blue is a complement of orange, red is a complement of green, yellow is a complement of violet and so on. Complementary colors provide striking visual effects when paired together. Claude Monet said this about complementary colors in 1888: … Read more
Colored pencils are a fantastic medium – they are easy to use, the cleanup time is minimal and you get exposure to the wonderful world of color. But with so many great brands of colored pencils available, it can be confusing to determine which colored pencils you should go with. In this post, I will … Read more
Daniel Garber was a talented American impressionist artist who was known for his large paintings of the New Hope area in Pennsylvania. He was also a teacher at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Whilst not as well known compared to the likes of the other leading impressionists such as Claude Monet and Vincent van Gogh, … Read more
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (25 February 1841 – 3 December 1919) was a leading French impressionist painter. Renoir’s works are colorful and vibrant with a distinct impressionist style. Here are some of the famous quotes by Renoir: “The pain passes, but the beauty remains.” “Why shouldn’t art be pretty? There are enough unpleasant things in the world.” … Read more
What is atmospheric perspective? Atmospheric perspective (or aerial perspective) refers to how the atmosphere affects how we see objects as they recede into the distance. Atmospheric perspective indicates that as an object recedes into the distance relative to the viewer, we see that object with reduced clarity, value and color saturation. In addition, objects in … Read more