Red Rocks of Sedona - Part 5

The foreground grasses are painted in this next step The ground is a yellow orange clay/sand mix with touches of grass, rocks and scrub brush. There are trees in the distance and yucca plants scattered in the foreground.

Prepare a wash of the following colors:

-Burnt Sienna
-Medium Yellow
-Cadmium Orange Light
-Sap Green

Wet the area of the painting from the bottom of the large rocks to the bottom of the page with clean water. While the paper is still wet, apply a light wash of Medium Yellow and add Burnt Sienna and Cadmium orange in areas as you paint from the top to the bottom of the paper. Allow areas of the yellow to show through. Drop in areas of a mix of Sap Green and Medium Yellow. This will be a pale, yellow green. Refer to the picture for location. Allow to dry.

Wet the area at the top of the foreground where it meets the large rocks with a #6 round brush and clean water. Dip the brush in the wash of Burnt Sienna and paint across the line where the rocks and foreground meet. Allow the water to pull the paint down into the foreground area. Do not make this a straight line. We will add trees to the front of this. But this line will "ground" the large rocks.

Next blog, we'll paint the trees and the yucca plants in the foreground.

Until next time....

Happy Painting!
Karen

Red Rocks of Sedona - Part 4

The next step is to paint the large rock formation in the center. These rocks are painted using the same basic colors as the rocks on the right side, only using different intensities. Prepare a wash of the following:

Indian Red
Burnt Sienna
Alizarin Crimson
Ultramarine Blue

Wet the entire area of rock with clean water and allow to dry until the paper is no longer shiny, but still wet.

Using a light wash of Indian Red, paint the entire rock area using a large round bush or a flat brush - which ever you are more comfortable using. I used a #10 round brush. While the first coat of Indian Red is wet, drop deeper shades of Indian Red into specific areas to create shadows, and add movement to the rock.

Add additional colors that vary in intensity from light to dark of true colors and mixes of the above colors referring to the photo for shape and color.

Allow to dry and look at the rock formation to determine areas that may need to be deepened. Use a dry brush, if desired to add texture to the rock.

Next blog, we will work on the foreground sand and grassy areas.

Until then......

Happy Painting!
Karen

Red Rocks of Sedona - Part 3

Background mountains and trees are painted next. To paint the rock formations and mountains in the distance, prepare the paints you will need before starting to paint.

To paint the rocks/mountains on the right side, prepare a wash of the following colors:

Indian Red
Burnt Sienna
Alizarin Crimson
Ultramarine Blue

Wet the area to be painted using clean water and allow to dry until the paper is no longer shiny, but still wet. Using a light wash of Indian Red and a large round brush, apply to the entire background rock formation. While this color is still wet, drop in Burnt Sienna and Indian Red in the bottom area to deepen the color as well as a few spots in the upper areas. Drop in areas of violet mixed from Alizarin Crimson and Ultramarine Blue. Refer to the picture for color placement. Allow to dry.

To paint the trees and background mountains on the left side, add the following colors to you pallet:

Sap Green
Hooker's Green Deep
Yellow Ochre

Apply clean water to the mountain/tree area and allow to dry until no longer shiny. While the paper is still wet, paint the mountain area using a wash of violet used in the mountains on the right and Indian Red. While these colors are still wet, drop in several shades of green including one dark green mixed by adding Ultramarine Blue to one of the greens. Also, drop in Yellow Ochre in and around the trees. Add shapes to the tops of the trees by paining the tree tops into the sky area. Allow to dry.

Next blog, we'll tackle the large red rock formation in the center. Until next time,

Happy Painting!
Karen

Red Rocks of Sedona - Part 2

Foreground and Yucca Plants:
The basic painting has been sketched in and now I plan to add some detail to the yucca plants in the foreground. See sketch above.

I drew in a little more detail for the stems and flowers. Since the yucca flower is mostly white, I will need to mask off the areas that need to remain white.

I used artist masking fluid to mask off these areas. For those of you who have never masked or may need a little refresher, the following are basic tips on masking:

- Use an old brush or one specifically put aside for masking. The masking compound is rubberized fluid which is difficult to remove from a brush and could ruin a brush for other uses. I use an "old" #6 round brush for most of my masking; and if I need a finer line, I use the tip of a toothpick However, for more precise masking, brushes can be bought specifically for that purpose. I am an Impressionist painter, so I don't need the precision of a finer brush.

- Dip the brush into a small container of liquid soap. This will coat the bristles and prevent or reduce the damage to the brush. It will also aid in clean up.

- Once the brush has been dipped in the soap, dip in the masking fluid and "paint" the areas you would like mask.

- Immediately wash the brush with soap when masking is complete. Never allow the masking fluid to dry on the brush. If the masking fluid dries on the brush, it will harden the bristles and the brush will be useless.

See my photo below for the masked yucca flowers. Allow the masking fluid to dry before proceeding with the painting.

Painting the sky:
I wanted a bright blue for the sky with a few hints of red reflected from the rocks below. I used the following colors:

- Cerulen Blue
- Phthalo Blue
- Crimson

The main sky color is Cerulen blue. I mixed a small amount of Phthalo blue for the upper part of the sky.

To paint the sky, apply clean water to the sky area and add a wash of your selected sky color. Starting at the top, paint down to the rock formations. While still wet, drop in a little bit of the Crimson in various spots.

To make the clouds, use a dry tissue (Kleenex) and remove areas of paint in the shape you would like.

Refer to my painting below. Allow to dry.

Next blog, we'll start on the red rocks...this will exciting to paint in the layers of rock.

Until then..........

Happy Painting!
Karen